An inspiring podcast on everything you need to know about color!
Nourishing Tradition with Laura Tofts
Part of learning about color is understanding it's many facets and cultural meanings. Laura Tofts passionately shares her perspective on color from a southern African point of view, describing Zimbabwe's color symbolism across pattern, natural pigments and minerals. Her goal is to bring global color conversations to Africa and spread its traditions with the world.
Born 47 years ago in Zimbabwe to British immigrants, Laura grew up in the Capital City Harare and completed her High School education there. In 1996, after completing Tertiary studies in Linguistics and Tourism, Laura moved to Brighton, Sussex, UK and gained experience in various Restaurants and Hotels before landing a position at the American Express Head Office in the European Corporate Travel Department.
The Call of Africa was too much, and Laura returned to Zimbabwe in early 2000 and joined Avis Car Hire as The National Sales “Lady” .... Until political events in the country saw the rapid collapse of the tourism industry and a very depressed environment. At that point Laura decided it was time for a change and whilst working as a restaurant manager in a 5-star Restaurant in Harare, studied Accounting by night. Once qualified, Laura took up a role as Bookkeeper in a Paint Shop downtown ... and that’s when the Eureka moment happened, and the passion was ignited.
The following year Laura opened her first Paint Wholesale Warehouse in the Light Industry Area, where she is still based today... 23 years later! Needless to say, Laura Tofts has extensive experience and deep knowledge about coatings and colour design. She is the only NCS qualified colour trainer in Zimbabwe, training architects, interior designers and anyone with an interest in colour. During the last 13 years, she has extended her skillset by delving deeply into specialist finishes, such as cement, texture, wallpaper, and anything else that adds dimensions to a wall. She has earned Certification from The Institute of Concrete of South Africa, specialising in cement for construction. Laura owns The Showroom (recently re-branded from Artisan), a surface design company that supplies top-quality products and creates unique finishes for residential and commercial projects. The Showroom is Zimbabwe’s main distributor of Medal Paints, Cemcrete, Earthcote, Jaxoleum and Wallpaper Inn, Eijffinger, ORAC, among others.
Laura’s Instagram Page best summarises it all “Africa forever in my Soul, Colour all around me”.
Unlocking Color Talent with Marianne Shillingford
If you are not yet a color enthusiast, you will once listening to this joyful episode with ambassador of color, Marianne Shillingford. Marianne will reveal what role color trends play in decoration and how you can apply color to enhance wellness in people's lives. As Founder of the Colour Design Awards she is now planning for the next event in June this year. Marianne furthermore explains how her search for emerging design talent comes about and what she believes is true color innovation.
Marianne Shillingford has over 30 years of experience in the interiors industry as a decorating and colour expert. As Creative Director of Dulux at Akzonobel she works closely with many creative disciplines from designers, architects and professional decorators to global colour experts and of course the Dulux Dog. She is a passionate expert and skilled communicator with experience in TV, radio and journalism. Marianne is also the founder of the Colour in Design Awards, which recognises and rewards outstanding use of colour in design by emerging creative talent.
Dutch Design Thinking with Piet Hein Eek
Piet is famous for his reclaimed design that travels the world and during my interview with him he reveals in detail his design philosophy, his view on sustainable design and how he selects colors while using the materials that he is surrounded by. How did his Dutch upbringing influence his designs and how come he works in an opposite manner as the rest of the world, never knowing what the end result of his designs will be like? Listen to our talk and find out also who was the main inspiration for his new paint color range!
Piet Hein Eek was born in the Netherlands in 1967. He graduated from the Academy for Industrial Design in Eindhoven in 1990. While at the Academy, he gained attention for his exam project “Scrap Wood Cupboards”. He sold all of the cupboards and used the money to start his own design studio in 1992. The following year he went into partnership with fellow designer Nob Ruijrok, establishing Eek en Ruijgrok v.o.f. Today, they continue to work in a 10.000 square meter multi-purpose space in Eindhoven, which includes a restaurant, a shop, a gallery, a showroom, and a studio.
Piet Hein Eek has built his business around old materials, saving discarded pieces of wood and working outside the circuit of mass production. His instantly recognisable work considers the tension between modernity and tradition, waste and sustainability. Piet Hein Eek’s work is sold in numerous galleries worldwide.
He has exhibited at venues like the Museum of Modern Art, New York and the Milan Furniture Fair, Italy.
Let Color Surprise you with Mark Woodman
As a great storyteller, Mark takes us all on a journey of color aha moments, color misperceptions and some color stories that marked his career. We will talk about getting the color right for a client as he reveals some interesting tactics. As a writer, he is very much involved in naming and describing color, an intriguing process that is more demanding as it may seem at first yet very fun!
Mark Woodman, a passionate designer, trend-spotter, educator, writer and speaker, designs interiors, consults on diverse product lines, and contributes to the pages and airwaves of media, and the stages of international exhibitions.
Mark consults for individuals and international corporations. including Corian® Design, Mid-Mark, Canadian Tire’s Premier Paint Collection, Blackfin Realty, and more. Mark Woodman’s aesthetic understanding as an interior designer of “real-life” balances his approach to design, color, and product specification. He is former president of Color Marketing Group, serves on various color panels, and is an accredited CEU educator.
A spirited speaker, Mark frequently lectures on color and design and his unique perspective allows him to weave narratives and solutions of design and color from influences as diverse as cuisine and fashion, to home décor.
Brazilian Color Fascination with Patricia Fecci
Patricia brings us on a journey through her professional life in the world of decorative paint in a very specific market, Brazil. What colors define the Brazilians, how do they decorate their homes and what color trends can we expect for Latin America in the next years. She will reveal the Sherwin Williams Company trend research methodology and the importance of collaboration when working on color palettes and harmonisation processes. Although its many difficulties, Brazilians continue to shine and the Patricia her energy during this talk reflects that.
Patrícia Fecci works as Color Marketing and Design Services Manager of the Sherwin-Williams Company in Brazil, one of the largest paint manufacturers and distributors in the world. She is responsible for all color support to company-owned stores, dealers, home centers and assists with color systems, country-specific color palettes, design trends, color merchandising, training and new business development. She is part of the Sherwin-Williams Global Color Forecast Team that tracks and forecasts color trends and design influences for the coatings industry, creating and giving color presentations to architects and designers.
Patrícia is member of the Color Marketing Group Association and Vice-President of PROCOR Brasil Association.
“Excellent series about color. It’s a complex topic and Judith approaches it from a variety of angles with her guests. Always entertaining and insightful. I look forward to listening to each episode and learning something new about color and the visionaries in the color world.”
— Review Apple Podcast