Fascination Color
Wanderausstellung seit 2015
Farben, wie das Blau des Himmels oder das Grün der Wiesen, werden von uns oft als selbstverständlich wahrgenommen. Dabei vergessen wir, dass uns ständig eine fast unbegrenzte Vielfalt an Farben umgibt.
Aber was ist das, was wir als Farbe bezeichnen und wie entsteht sie? Sehen alle Menschen die gleichen Farben? Was ist Metamerie und welche Geschichte hat die Farbe Indigo?
In acht Themenbereichen mit vielen interaktiven Exponaten zeigt das Public Science Projekt des Carl Bosch Museums für alle Altersgruppen spannende naturwissenschaftliche Zusammenhänge. Man erfährt, welchen Einfluss unser Gehirn auf die Wahrnehmung von Farben hat oder wie kulturelle Unterschiede aussehen und kann Geschichten von der Höhlenmalerei bis zu neusten Farbentwicklungen entdecken.
Wissenschaftliches Team zur Entwicklung der Ausstellung: Sabine König, Jan Dübbers, Knut Völzke, Marion Jourdan, Bianca Flock, Hayo Hauptmann
LEISE Designteam: Knut Völzke, Yamila Sauer, Vicky Corakas, Johannes Ott, Hans Hess, Nick Hoffmann
Auftraggeber: Carl Bosch Museum, Heidelberg
Entstehungsjahr: 2014-2015
Umgeben von Farben: Die Ausstellung beginnt mit einem begehbaren Raum,
der die Vielfalt unserer farbigen Welt aufzeigt.
We live in a world full of colors. They help us orientate ourselves, indicate dangers, evoke associations and can influence moods.
The media exhibit "Electromagnetic Spectrum" provides information about the connection between different wavelengths and their properties. From gamma rays to radio waves - and in the middle a small area between 380 nm and 780 nm with the color spectrum visible to humans.
What is color? Light hits surfaces; the reflected part creates a color stimulus in the eye; the brain interprets the information and creates a "color experience."
Colors can be visible in different ways. The exhibition shows the principles of absorption, refraction, scattering and interference. Infographics as well as media and hands-on exhibits convey the special features of the creation of colors.
The central topic area “How do we see colors?” provides information about the influence of the brain on our interpretation of colors and explains phenomena of color perception with interactive exhibits.
The station “How colors mix” also includes an archive on the history of color systems.
The way colors mix is often perceived as confusing. When light hits surfaces, different color mixtures are created than when colors reach our eyes directly. The exhibition station uses graphics and hands-on exhibits to explain the connection and differences between "light and body colors" in a clear manner.
Cave paintings show that humans have been using colors since very early times. Until the middle of the 19th century, all dyes and pigments were of natural origin. Their production was very complex and some of them are still valuable trading goods today.
Dyes and pigments are summarized under the term "colorant". While dyes dissolve in liquids and are often used to color textiles or paper, varnishes, paints or cosmetics contain tiny insoluble particles called pigments.
The history of body painting or how the expression «blueing» might have originated,
reveal topic drawers.
How a color appears depends on its intensity, its degree of gloss and transparency, as well as the structure of the surface to be colored. The patterns on this wall show the diverse influence of the material properties on the color effect.
Modern colorants are synthetically produced colors, which are available today in an enormous variety. They are suitable for a wide variety of applications. Even self-luminous colors and those with a "flip-flop effect" or thermo-reactive colors are conquering our everyday lives.
What is the most commonly used colorant in the world? Have little girls always been dressed in pink and boys in light blue? Seven islands tell exciting color stories.
The kermes aphid was already used as a dye in the early Iron Age. Since the discovery of America, the even better dyeing agent, the cochineal aphid, has been used frequently. It lives on prickly pears and is collected, dried and ground at "harvest time". It can be used to dye textiles, make-up and food, among other things. Today, instead of the natural dye, a synthetic dye is usually used, which has the food approval name E120. A cheaper and controversial substitute is the azo dye cochineal red A, which is labeled E 124.
The color gold is named after the precious metal of the same name. The term is derived from the Indo-European word "ghel" and means "shiny, yellow". The special appearance of the color gold is based on the interaction with the metallic shine of its surface.
Bisherige Ausstellungsstationen:
Carl Bosch Museum, Heidelberg (2015/16)
Wilhelm Ostwald Museum, Großbothen (2016/17)
Science Center Audioversum, Innsbruck (2017/18)
Egerland-Museum, Marktredwitz (2019)
LWL Freilichtmuseum Hagen (2021)
Phan-Technikum, Wismar (2023)
Kommende Ausstellungsstation:
Naturkunde-Museum Bielefeld
(18. Mai 2025 bis 26. Oktober 2025)