An inspiring podcast on everything you need to know about color!
Stay tuned for our next podcast with Mexican designer Fernando Laposse live November 26!
Nourishing Tradition with Laura Tofts
Part of learning about color is understanding it's many facets and cultural meanings. Laura Tofts passionately shares her perspective on color from a southern African point of view, describing Zimbabwe's color symbolism across pattern, natural pigments and minerals. Her goal is to bring global color conversations to Africa and spread its traditions with the world.
Born 47 years ago in Zimbabwe to British immigrants, Laura grew up in the Capital City Harare and completed her High School education there. In 1996, after completing Tertiary studies in Linguistics and Tourism, Laura moved to Brighton, Sussex, UK and gained experience in various Restaurants and Hotels before landing a position at the American Express Head Office in the European Corporate Travel Department.
The Call of Africa was too much, and Laura returned to Zimbabwe in early 2000 and joined Avis Car Hire as The National Sales “Lady” .... Until political events in the country saw the rapid collapse of the tourism industry and a very depressed environment. At that point Laura decided it was time for a change and whilst working as a restaurant manager in a 5-star Restaurant in Harare, studied Accounting by night. Once qualified, Laura took up a role as Bookkeeper in a Paint Shop downtown ... and that’s when the Eureka moment happened, and the passion was ignited.
The following year Laura opened her first Paint Wholesale Warehouse in the Light Industry Area, where she is still based today... 23 years later! Needless to say, Laura Tofts has extensive experience and deep knowledge about coatings and colour design. She is the only NCS qualified colour trainer in Zimbabwe, training architects, interior designers and anyone with an interest in colour. During the last 13 years, she has extended her skillset by delving deeply into specialist finishes, such as cement, texture, wallpaper, and anything else that adds dimensions to a wall. She has earned Certification from The Institute of Concrete of South Africa, specialising in cement for construction. Laura owns The Showroom (recently re-branded from Artisan), a surface design company that supplies top-quality products and creates unique finishes for residential and commercial projects. The Showroom is Zimbabwe’s main distributor of Medal Paints, Cemcrete, Earthcote, Jaxoleum and Wallpaper Inn, Eijffinger, ORAC, among others.
Laura’s Instagram Page best summarises it all “Africa forever in my Soul, Colour all around me”.
Unlocking Color Talent with Marianne Shillingford
If you are not yet a color enthusiast, you will once listening to this joyful episode with ambassador of color, Marianne Shillingford. Marianne will reveal what role color trends play in decoration and how you can apply color to enhance wellness in people's lives. As Founder of the Colour Design Awards she is now planning for the next event in June this year. Marianne furthermore explains how her search for emerging design talent comes about and what she believes is true color innovation.
Marianne Shillingford has over 30 years of experience in the interiors industry as a decorating and colour expert. As Creative Director of Dulux at Akzonobel she works closely with many creative disciplines from designers, architects and professional decorators to global colour experts and of course the Dulux Dog. She is a passionate expert and skilled communicator with experience in TV, radio and journalism. Marianne is also the founder of the Colour in Design Awards, which recognises and rewards outstanding use of colour in design by emerging creative talent.
Dutch Design Thinking with Piet Hein Eek
Piet is famous for his reclaimed design that travels the world and during my interview with him he reveals in detail his design philosophy, his view on sustainable design and how he selects colors while using the materials that he is surrounded by. How did his Dutch upbringing influence his designs and how come he works in an opposite manner as the rest of the world, never knowing what the end result of his designs will be like? Listen to our talk and find out also who was the main inspiration for his new paint color range!
Piet Hein Eek was born in the Netherlands in 1967. He graduated from the Academy for Industrial Design in Eindhoven in 1990. While at the Academy, he gained attention for his exam project “Scrap Wood Cupboards”. He sold all of the cupboards and used the money to start his own design studio in 1992. The following year he went into partnership with fellow designer Nob Ruijrok, establishing Eek en Ruijgrok v.o.f. Today, they continue to work in a 10.000 square meter multi-purpose space in Eindhoven, which includes a restaurant, a shop, a gallery, a showroom, and a studio.
Piet Hein Eek has built his business around old materials, saving discarded pieces of wood and working outside the circuit of mass production. His instantly recognisable work considers the tension between modernity and tradition, waste and sustainability. Piet Hein Eek’s work is sold in numerous galleries worldwide.
He has exhibited at venues like the Museum of Modern Art, New York and the Milan Furniture Fair, Italy.
Living Beautifully with Olga Hanono
Olga will reveal how she transforms spaces with their unique energy into a home for her clients, the importance of feeling a space, an aesthetic, a textile, a color before starting a project. Why is color so important in her life and how does she apply color in her interiors? How does the world of art influence her work and how did her love for art start? Listen to our talk and learn about Olga her rich heritage growing up in Mexico City and how its culture and folklore influences Olga her color choices for her projects.
Olga Hanono is a Mexican-born designer with a traditional cultural upbringing and deep passion for aesthetics, beautiful objects, and space. Her charismatic and playful personality comes through her original designs that are no subject to rules or limitations. She transforms every space into an unusual adventure.
Olga has a natural affinity with art and her projects are a combination of uniqueness and glamour, setting trends in the design world and attracting numerous awards (she has been referred to as the IT Designer, the rock star of design and the 2017 designer revelation). Hanono has her own brand textiles and wallpaper collection. She loves exploring new materials and novel/alternative solutions for creating a space: mixing patterns, colors, textures and following her intuition to create interiors of the highest standard and taste, incorporating carefully curated objects and art. She published “the art of beautiful living” by the prestigious publisher ASSOULINE, she offered a press conference at the national palace Bellas Artes in Mexico City and at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York City.
HAPPINESS is her major motto and she embrace it with creative solutions aimed at a luxury lifestyle.
Let Color Surprise you with Mark Woodman
As a great storyteller, Mark takes us all on a journey of color aha moments, color misperceptions and some color stories that marked his career. We will talk about getting the color right for a client as he reveals some interesting tactics. As a writer, he is very much involved in naming and describing color, an intriguing process that is more demanding as it may seem at first yet very fun!
Mark Woodman, a passionate designer, trend-spotter, educator, writer and speaker, designs interiors, consults on diverse product lines, and contributes to the pages and airwaves of media, and the stages of international exhibitions.
Mark consults for individuals and international corporations. including Corian® Design, Mid-Mark, Canadian Tire’s Premier Paint Collection, Blackfin Realty, and more. Mark Woodman’s aesthetic understanding as an interior designer of “real-life” balances his approach to design, color, and product specification. He is former president of Color Marketing Group, serves on various color panels, and is an accredited CEU educator.
A spirited speaker, Mark frequently lectures on color and design and his unique perspective allows him to weave narratives and solutions of design and color from influences as diverse as cuisine and fashion, to home décor.
Brazilian Color Fascination with Patricia Fecci
Patricia brings us on a journey through her professional life in the world of decorative paint in a very specific market, Brazil. What colors define the Brazilians, how do they decorate their homes and what color trends can we expect for Latin America in the next years. She will reveal the Sherwin Williams Company trend research methodology and the importance of collaboration when working on color palettes and harmonisation processes. Although its many difficulties, Brazilians continue to shine and the Patricia her energy during this talk reflects that.
Patrícia Fecci works as Color Marketing and Design Services Manager of the Sherwin-Williams Company in Brazil, one of the largest paint manufacturers and distributors in the world. She is responsible for all color support to company-owned stores, dealers, home centers and assists with color systems, country-specific color palettes, design trends, color merchandising, training and new business development. She is part of the Sherwin-Williams Global Color Forecast Team that tracks and forecasts color trends and design influences for the coatings industry, creating and giving color presentations to architects and designers.
Patrícia is member of the Color Marketing Group Association and Vice-President of PROCOR Brasil Association.
Color Escapism with Rana Khadra
Rana shares insights on the differences but also the similarities of color use and color trends in the Middle East compared to the European region, how color is energy in its form and how we are all influenced by color throughout our childhood. During our conversation we also discussed the intriguing pull many have for her native region, the colors of the city she grew up in and where she finds color inspiration in these difficult times.
As head of the creative department, Rana is the brain behind creating enchanting colors and the discerning eye when it comes to forecasting and spotting trends for Jotun. With her eclectic experience in advertising, marketing and product management, she has spearheaded product innovations while successfully launching new products and color collections across the Middle East, Africa and India. She is a certified Color Trainer by NCS, Sweden and a member of the Color Marketing Group. Rana has conducted many masterclass in color for interior designers and architects across the region. Her infectious passion indeed for color is reflected in the hues of her vibrant personality. She has a thing for beautiful doors and walls and a longing for longitudes as she often travels the world to fill her shelves with hidden curios and stories. Rana is currently residing in Dubai.
The Power of Listening with Doty Horn
In this episode I will talk with Doty Horn from the New York area about her career path in Fashion and Interior Design and how similar those two industries are when it comes to color trends. She will highlight the importance of a three to five year plan when doing trend research, the difficulty of being a visionary in a corporate world, the translation of today's happenings into colors for our homes and her new passion: mentorship. A key take away from this conversation is: the power of active listening!
Doty is Founding Director of ColorVoyant LLC, an international visionary color marketing firm formed in early 2011. With an expansive cross-current background in the interior and fashion industries as well as product development for companies such as Armstrong, Formica, Cole of California, and FIDM (Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising). For seven years as Benjamin Moore Paint’s Director of Color and Design, Doty established color strategies and trend forecasting for market-focused programs using color as the driving principle. Doty also currently is board director at Color Marketing Group. With a background in the fashion Industry and through extensive traveling for trend research, Doty has established a rich foundation for understanding color and design trends that inform her leadership in color. Her insights reflect a thorough understanding of the emotional impact and power that color has on the Designer and Consumer markets.
“Excellent series about color. It’s a complex topic and Judith approaches it from a variety of angles with her guests. Always entertaining and insightful. I look forward to listening to each episode and learning something new about color and the visionaries in the color world.”
— Review Apple Podcast