Chromotopia

This exhibition of work from the Escalette Permanent Art Collection was curated by students in Dr. Amy Buono’s Spring 2026 Art History seminar “Chromophobia/Chromophilia.” In this seminar we explored the complex role of color in the making of the early modern, trans-Atlantic world, and in shaping and re-shaping cultural relationships between Europe, Africa, and the Americas. We investigated the importance of color as raw commodities transformed: cochineal beetles for a brilliant, highly-saturated red; indigo plants for a range of deep blues; palo campeche trees for lustrous and vibrant black; raw and crafted emeralds for vivid, plant-like translucent green; and a range of others color that emerged in new global economic systems of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Beyond the economic imperatives of color as a commodity, however, we considered differences in the use and perception of color and its role in defining cultural difference and social status. Color is embedded in cross-cultural language systems, scientific and artistic discourse, religions, styles and fashions, among many other contexts.

Chromotopia embodies the commitment of the Escalette and the Art History Program at Chapman University to experiential learning. Transforming knowledge from this seminar into this exhibition, we invite our Chapman community to reconsider the expansive nature of color in our world today.

- Dr. Amy Buono