It is a known fact that Mexico is an incredibly vibrant place but Guanajuato, a central Mexican state, seems to be particularly enthusiastic about colour. Yet another location for the soon to be created ‘plenty of colour travel tour’ to visit!

(images via nadsart, greg phipps, aspiazu, jordi angrill, lucy nieto, roberto bojorquez, eric lovelin, aspiazu)

The DLA Piper office, designed by Dutch architecture firm Hofman Dujardin, has a carpet colour gradient that reflects and compensates for how much sunlight affects the space during a working day. The warm colours were used where there is the least sun and the cooler colours were used where there is the most. If you have ever worked in a large corporate office with kilometres of beige carpet and fluorescent lighting, this idea is just plain brilliant as it allows a cookie cutter office to become a happy, creative and stimulating workspace.

One of the biggest bonuses of this idea is that the gradient of colour becomes instant wayfinding. In large offices of this nature, you often find yourself turning corners that look identical and losing any sense of direction. That certainly wouldn’t happen this office! (I imagine something like, “Let’s meet in Fred’s office. He’s in purple.”) What I also love about this design is that it is bright but not over-the-top. By using white and neutral furniture and accessories, each office space remains sophisticated and modern. The carpet is glowing bright from below but the eye won’t become tired or overwhelmed by red walls or a yellow desk. I know this vibrancy of colour is unthinkable for most of the corporate world but I would love to see workspaces use colour more. Particularly in offices where windows are at a premium, colour can improve moods, stimulate creativity and create a distinct and easy to navigate space.

(images via 2modern)

I have always loved the word Patagonia because it sounds so regal, majestic and otherworldly. After seeing a photo of the glaciers where Argentina and Chile meet, I realize that my vision was pretty accurate. Breathtaking is the only way to describe the blue palettes created by the spectacular sculptures of ice. Patagonia is definitely added to the top of my “must see” travel list.

(images via dids, daveleb, dave curtis, ingekuhn, nigel craig)

An anonymous street artist in Albuquerque, New Mexico spills paint over the edge of neglected buildings and ends up mixing graffiti and art into a beautiful illegal rainbow. The appearance of these rainbows has generated a lot of controversy with people either loving or hating them (there has even been a police investigation and arrest.) Personally, I love them and their specific application to urban eyesores. I am not sure how someone can compare these joyful, dripping rainbows to standard fare graffiti lazily scrawled on the side of a convenience store. Alibi did an interview with the anonymous artist pre-arrest and I found that one of the most intriguing thoughts was what the rainbow made you see beyond vibrant paint: “part of the reason I do the rainbows instead of typical lettering is because every sign we see is left to right, and this is up and down. Automatically, your eye wants to follow the line, so you look from the ground up to the sky… when they see that, maybe they’re having a rough day or a rough year or life and they can just look at it and find peace for a second and remember what rainbows meant when they were a kid, or when they could look up at the sky and see one.”

(spotted on aesthetics of joy, images via mike kuniavsky, jiggs, nuart)

Spring is just around the corner which always makes me think about tulip fields and the vibrant, fabric-like patterns they create when acres of colour line up against each other. I hope I can visit the Netherlands one day and see them in person.

(To see more, take a look here)

It is only right to start this site off with photos of the Holsteiner Stairs by artist Horst Glaesker. In 2008, I saw photos of this installation in Wuppertal, Germany and I knew I had to create a colour blog. I love how, among fairly standard brown buildings, pure magic emerges. Each stair has a stenciled word that describes human relationships such as love, hope, revenge and temptation. I really do imagine heaven is at the top.

(images via frizztext)