Artist spreads splash of colour across Britain
"It’s such a really simple piece of design".
That design has enabled Birmingham artist Stacey Barnfield to spread his love of colour and typography across the country and beyond.
The Colour Palette Company began in the city a few years ago in lockdown, with the idea that a panel of colours could be designed to represent the area.
Three years later, and more than 50 have been created as pieces of wall art, mugs, bags - and even large-format installations.
Nobody asked me to create a Birmingham colour palette but I think the city deserves one so here it is. My gift to you all. pic.twitter.com/ZDjJIM4rsW
— Stacey Barnfield (@staceybarnfield) January 25, 2021
"It was very much intended to match those paint swatches you get from a DIY store," said Mr Barnfield.
"It’s intended to match that, but with a difference where each of the colours has a local reference on there."
After his Birmingham colour palette won much online love, he was inundated with requests from people wanting something similar where they lived.
"What I’ve always tried to do and encourage is to have local references that are lesser known, that aren’t the obvious touristy-type landmarks.
"So for example on the Birmingham one, it’s got Mr Egg yellow. And I think you’ve got to be a certain age to get that... it’s a late-night café that people staggered into after the clubs."
New colour palettes are often created in partnership with local people.
"How it’s evolved is, if I’m working with a local council, we ask the people from the area what they think should go on there," said Mr Barnfield.
"And I love that, for me that’s the best part of how this has progressed is to absolutely get the buy-in of the community with their ideas.
"I am blown away, genuinely, especially when I see one of the colour palettes made for large format at a railway station or shopping centre.
"I love seeing people stopping, taking a look and learning a bit more about an area."
The success of The Colour Palette Company has taken its creator by surprise.
"Never in a million years did I think it was going to become what it has," he said.
"And I think that’s been quite nice in many ways because I didn’t have a commercial plan for this.
"There was no strategy for this – it was just me playing around with things on my laptop at home."
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