Seeing Red: The Power of Red

Red is the color of power: the light and warmth of the sun, the burning heat of fire, a connection to the divine and supernatural, and also a symbol of life and death. Royalty, military leaders, and priests of many cultures have appropriated the symbolic authority of red.

Join Director of Conservation Perry Hurt for a lecture that takes a close look at the dyes and pigments used throughout art history that give us insights into our deep connections to red.

This lecture is held in conjunction with the exhibition Seeing Red located in the Conservation Gallery in West Building.

Image: Cornelis de Vos, King Philip III of Spain, 1635, oil on canvas, 94 × 51 in., Purchased with funds from the North Carolina State Art Society (Robert F. Phifer Bequest)