Colour Space finds its origin in the first Spot Painting Hirst made in 1986, whilst in his first year of Goldsmiths. Conceived in 2016, Colour Space serves as a response to the iconic Spot Painting series that followed the original work. Where the Spot Paintings were painstakingly rigorous in their formulaic grid structure, intended to look as if they'd been made 'by a person trying to paint like a machine , the Colour Space series is looser, more painterly, featuring informal drips and splashes of paint. In both series, however, no two colours repeat within a single canvas. Colour Space features an introductory essay by Ann Gallagher, Director of Collections at Tate. The book's publication coincides with the first public exhibition of the works at Houghton Hall, Norfolk in March 2018.
