Exploratorium
Colorfest

An extravaganza celebrating
the art and science of color

July 1–September 5, 2011

Programs for Adults

As part of ColorFest, the Exploratorium is offering special seminars and hands-on workshops for adults. Learn the ins and outs of synesthesia, create your own paints, or hear from a color-branding expert for Apple and Nike.

And don’t miss After Dark , our monthly evening series for adults featuring cocktails, conversation, and playful, innovative science and art events. After Dark: Red (Thursday, July 7) celebrates the color of passion and pageantry, while After Dark: Blue (Thursday, August 4) explores the color of cool.

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Seminars and Workshops

Alex Warren

Alex Warren, founder of Sinopia Pigments and Materials
Making Paint with Dry Pigments
Saturday, July 23
10:00 a.m.–noon
Alex Warren, founder of Sinopia Pigments and Materials, will present an in- depth seminar focusing on different types of pigments, the advantages of making your own paint from dry pigment, and how-to demonstrations. $100 (Members $85), which includes an eight-color dry pigment set; register at www.exploratorium.edu/adult-classes .

Physics of Color
Saturday, July 30
1:00–4:00 p.m.

Join Dr. Paul Doherty, Exploratorium senior scientist and author of The Color of Nature, in an exploration of color via Exploratorium exhibits and hands- on investigations. Build a spectroscope using a compact disk and find the component wavelengths of various light sources, which you’ll see as colored bands. $70 (Members $60); register at www.exploratorium.edu/adult-classes .

Dye Like a Natural
Saturday, August 6
1:00–4:00 p.m.
Learn about the chemistry of color with Dr. Julie Yu, staff scientist with the Exploratorium Teacher Institute. Create a variety of natural dyes using plant and animal materials, and then combine these with mordants, which fix the dyes, to explore how to transfer dyes onto natural fibers. $70 (Members $60); register at www.exploratorium.edu/adult-classes .

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After Dark: Blue After Dark Events

After Dark: Red
Thursday, July 7
6:00–10:00 p.m.
Renowned Oaxacan artists Elena Gonzalez Ruiz, Fidel Cruz, and Maria Luisa Mendoza will demonstrate the ancient art of using dye made from cochineal insects. In addition, Alex Warren, artist and founder of Sinopia Pigments and Materials, will share secrets of making paints from scratch, and there’ll be a fiery flamenco performance by San Francisco’s Theatre Flamenco. Exploratorium astronomer Dr. Isabel Hawkins will offer insights on the significance of scarlet in Mayan astronomy, and the beloved classic The Red Balloon (1956, 34 min.), by Albert Lamorisse, will screen in the McBean Theater. See the After Dark site for more details.

After Dark: Blue
Thursday, August 4
6:00–10:00 p.m.
Delve into the color of cool with explorations of indigo, underwater vision, blue skies, and a blues performance to be broadcast live by San Francisco’s own KPOO 89.5 FM. Stay tuned for details at the After Dark site. Visit the After Dark site for more details.