Karl Gerstner: The forms of colour (1986)

25/03/10 – In his book, The forms of colour, Karl Gerstner examines the interactions of colour and form. The book begins with an analysis of existing graphical colour spaces and the advantages, as Gerstner sees them, of the ‘uniform colour space’ (UCS) developed by Günter Wyszecki. He then goes on to examine form systems, i.e., developments in geometry since Euclid, including perspective, topologies and fractals. Using geometric systems as generative devices for formal exploration leads Gerstner into an examination of the intricacies of Islamic art. Thanks to a simple pattern obtained from a Moroccan craftsman, Gerstner succeeds in taking the reader through a sequence of examples outlining the countless variations possible and the underlying structural components of the system.

Next he discusses the theory of forms developed by Wilhelm Ostwald in 1922 – a theory largely overlooked among Ostwald’s more famous works. This theory, or system, like the Moroccan craftsman’s pattern, provides an endless supply of formal variations, all based upon a rational system. Ostwald’s theory was carried further by artist, Hans Hinterreiter, who developed a system for closed (planar) forms and, in turn, colour. Hinterreiter’s system begins with that of Ostwald’s ‘form organ’ but introduces a formal structure, a ‘network organ,’ to which can be mapped the results of the form organ. In this way, the system allows for countless modes of expansion and variety.

At this point, and against this background of formal and colourimetric developments, Gerstner outlines his own examination of colour/form relationships. He begins with Kandinsky’s well known metaphysical ideas of the correspondence of colour and form: square=red, triangle=yellow, circle=blue. His own initial examinations reevaluate Kandinsky’s findings and produce a system of ‘Colour Signs’. Next, with the help of computer programming, Gerstner further develops the system yielding new primary forms: astroid, diagon and sinuon and establishes what he calls ‘The Colour Form Model.’ Illustrations show the development of the system, its variations and even a few sculptural works. The book concludes with Gerstner opening up the discussion to possibilities of correspondence with sensory modes other than the visual, i.e., the aural and tactile, and provides a range of examples from various significant sources.

Selections from Karl Gerstner’s The forms of colour: