Green: The History of a Color

Well, the short answer is "Yes," and this book is the proof of that fact. Trivial as though the title may sound, the book is the result of research of a French historical expert who has spent years studying art, philosophy, and the fine arts, particularly as these relate to color and design. The present work, "Green" is the third English translation of the original French series that started with "Blue" and "Black," and there can be little denying that the work packs a wallop. It's not just fascinating: its engrossing.The book takes us from the fringes of pre-history and then into the Greek and Roman worlds to help establish how ancient cultures and civilizations viewed (no pun intended) the color. We then move into the medieval period, looking at the color's use in illuminated manuscripts, frescos, and painted sculpture. We continue to move forward in time, bringing the examination all the way to the present, describing and interpreting the color's reality across time. The narrative explores how the color has been differentially interpreted over these vast time periods (for example, why are all pharmacy crosses in France green? And why was green at one time associated with ill health, and others, with life and florid good health?), and presents the development of the color over time.It actually might sound trivial at first glance, but it is truly a unique and thought-provoking work. It makes associations between art, history, philosophy, and more. It gives us new perspectives on something as simple as a color (or is it really as simple as it first sounds?), and leaves us with what I can only describe as a truly unique and enjoyable examination of the subject.If you read "Green," you'll want "Blue" and "Black" (and "Red" and "Yellow" are to come), but, unfortunately, with the fame of these works spreading now that they are bring translated into English, the price of even used copies of "Blue" make them largely overpriced. (If you read French, however, the French versions of all these volumes can be picked up for nearly nothing at all.) As the works get press in such publications as The New York Review of Books, expect this situation to only get worse, unless the publisher decides on reprints. So, keep your eye's peeled for the new colors as they are released, and get them while you can.Finally, it must be said that this volume is beautifully printed, illustrated, and laid out in gorgeous, high resolution, deep color, glossy pages. The reproduced images do nothing but enhance the experience. It's a gorgeous volume, and really a reasonable price when you get it at it's normal release price. Five stars.

If you are interested in painting, interior decor, textiles and fashion, or material culture and history in general, you will enjoy this book. If you are interested in all of them, you will be delighted with it. The author draws from a wide range of fields to discuss the changing attitudes toward the color green from earliest times through the present. Completely absent from pre-historic drawings, it does not appear to have acquired a name of its own until the Hellenistic era of Greek civilization and broad use until the Romans took it up. Thereafter, it has a complex history, owing to problems in dying techniques, cultural associations, technologies, scientific attitudes, and the properties of pigments. Aside from a chapter in which the author argues that Protestantism was hostile to the color, I found the entire book so interesting I could not put it down when I picked it up for what I had intended to be a brief preview. Pastoureau weaves the elements affecting the creation, use, and associations of the color so deftly the reader forgets how much new information she has mastered, thinks of it as something she has always known. The prose is both lively and lucid, and the anecdotes and explanations so well chosen that the new is readily acquired and stubbornly retained. For instance, who today would imagine a dying industry so strictly governed that a dyer or dying operation was limited to the production of a single color? In such a situation, greens were scarce, since they were usually the products of overdying chrome yellow with blue. In general, Pastoureau traces how culture has changed the perception of the meaning of the color over time and how we misread cultural, social, and art history when we assume colors have always signified what they mean today.This book is lavishly illustrated (A child who could not yet read would find it delightful for its illustrations alone.) and the balance of text, illustration, and white space make it a pure joy to read. It won't stay on the bookshelf of my library: it keeps landing on sofas, coffee tables, and bedside reading stacks. A true joy of a book.

I have all of the colors the author has published. I enjoyed all but this. How can you address the color green and not mention the association with Ireland and specifically Irish Catholics? This omission makes me question his research. Are there more omissions in the other books?I cannot understand how this happened. He talks about Protestant avoidance of green, so it was at least considered. I don’t understand how he missed what most people in this country associate with green.

I was looking for "Green: The History of a Color" for a research project. Pike's Peak Library District had a discarded copy that they sent to me in exactly the condition described at an affordable price. It was exactly what I needed.

Who would have thought that; green was once considered a dangerous color, that actors at one time never wore green for fear of misfortune, or that 19th century scientists dismissed the color as merely complementary? This books is comprehensive, thorough, and above all interesting. An entertaining read for color enthusiasts and the rest of us. This book is also great for my coaching work as the Color Reading Professor!

Amazing book! Great author! The color is fabulous:)

OK, but not great

Disappointing. Very well researched but dull and didn't really have the information I was looking for.

An approachable text about colour in art. A good read

Another beautiful book. Expert delivery

A mi mujer le está encantando toda la historia y todo lo que el libro le permite descubrir sobre este color. También se ha comprado lo del color rojo y lo del negro, así que juntos son una colección inestimable.

Another in Pastoureau's famous series! I love them all, particularly this one! I love the historical perspective he achieves, avoiding the distortions of a purely modern perspective. I love the fact that he sticks to what he knows about, and doesn't go outside the Western tradition. I love the fact that everything is presented in a highly readable way.

Este livro serve como uma referencia altamente confiavel no topico de historia das cores, dada a enorme qualificação do autor..