National Gallery Returns to ‘Stories in Colour’ With Eight New Podcast Episodes

The National Gallery in London has released the second series of its podcast ‘Stories in Colour’, extending a project that explores the histories of colour in art and culture. The gallery says the series looks at how colour has changed the world, drawing on the expertise of curators, scientists, historians, artists and other specialists. It is available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and through the National Gallery website.

The new series is structured around eight episodes and takes listeners from ancient pigments to contemporary debates over colour. The gallery introduces the series with questions including “What does colour sound like?”, “How did mauve become the brat green of the Victorians?” and “Why do we think pink is just for girls?” It also points to topics such as a beautiful blue pigment found in Afghan mines that cost more than gold, and the search for the blackest shade of black.

According to the National Gallery, the podcast’s second series began on Wednesday 20 May 2026 and continued with weekly releases, concluding on 8 July 2026. The gallery describes the project as one that lets listeners “see – and hear – the National Gallery’s paintings in a whole new spectrum of light.” The podcast sits within the institution’s wider digital and learning offer, alongside its exhibitions, events, research and public programming.

The gallery has also named the guests appearing in the second series. They include Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience Jamie Ward, composer Dr Deborah Pritchard, writer Victoria Finlay, colour historian Evie Hatch, cultural historian Kassia St Clair, arts critic and author Chloë Ashby, curator Dr Alexandra Loske, colour consultant and founder of ‘The Colour Club’ Zeynep Sagir, artist Stuart Semple, Associate Professor in Colour and Philosophical Studies Dr Vien Cheung and National Gallery Educator Ed Dickenson.

The podcast’s subject matter ranges across colour theory, perception, materials and meaning. The National Gallery frames the series as an inquiry into both the practical and symbolic dimensions of colour, asking how pigments were made, how they were valued and how they have been interpreted in different periods. Its accompanying site also links the podcast to related colour stories on blue, purple, red, orange, black and yellow in art.

The gallery says ‘Stories in Colour’ is available as a video playlist on YouTube and as audio on major podcast platforms, with the episodes also accessible directly from the National Gallery website. The first eight episodes of the original series and a ‘Gold’ miniseries are also presented on the podcast page.