Atelier Ellis & The Hepworth Wakefield launch a palette of seven distinctive hues.
This May, Atelier Ellis, makers of beautiful, breathable bio-based paint, introduce a creative partnership with The Hepworth Wakefield for the Spring/Summer 2025 exhibition season.
Cassandra Ellis, colourist and founder of Atelier Ellis, has created seven bespoke colours for the exhibitions of Helen Chadwick and Caroline Walker, which will be on view at The Hepworth Wakefield from 17 May to 27 October 2025. The paints will also be available to purchase, with 10% of proceeds going to support the gallery.
Working closely with the exhibition curators, the colours have each been specially created to respond to the artists’ work. Chadwick’s practice embraces the sensuous aspects of the natural world and often incorporates unexpected mediums, such as chocolate, flowers, snow and milk, while Caroline Walker’s intimate paintings offer a lens into the everyday lives of women. The palette has been meticulously crafted to enhance the viewing experience of the exhibitions, in quiet support of the curatorial expertise.
“Crafting a bespoke palette for The Hepworth Wakefield has been a joyful experience for me. Humans, art, materialism, research, and belonging are at the foundations of Atelier Ellis. To create colours that quietly support the Helen Chadwick and Caroline Walker exhibitions is a dream partnership. I really am thrilled.” Cassandra Ellis, Founder of Atelier Ellis.
Highlights include 3:44am – the deep and singular moment between night and day, Molten – the delicious swathe of melted chocolate. Everyone is a neutral to use everywhere for everyone - and The Grass is Greener – a confident and earthy grassy green.
“We are thrilled that The Hepworth WakeTield is collaborating with Atelier Ellis for the summer season of exhibitions. Cassandra and the team create the most elegant, natural and ethical paint, with colours crafted as though by an artist. The bespoke range of shades that they have created for the Helen Chadwick and Caroline Walker exhibitions are intuitive and perceptive to the works of art that they will surround, as well as being exquisitely beautiful in their own right. We couldn’t be happier.” Laura Smith, Director of Collection and Exhibitions at The Hepworth WakeTield.
The Colours
Helen Chadwick
Marrow – A visceral but human pink. Alive and joyful to live with.
Molten – The rich and delicious hue of melted chocolate.
The Grass is Greener – An earthy green with brighter top notes – as grass gives in to summer sun.
Reverie- An uplifting pale sky blue with yellow ochre to carry warmth.
Caroline Walker
Everyone – The perfect neutral. Balanced, easy and works everywhere for everyone.
Gold Top – Full-fat milk. Golden undertones in a milky white.
3:44am – The deep milieu of the night – and the waking hour for many.
Image credit: The Hepworth Wakfield x Atelier Ellis © Ellen Christina Hancock
Notes to Editors
For media enquiries and hi-res images please contact:
Hannah Vitos at Rees & Co | hannah@reesandco.com |+44 (0)20 3137 8776
The paints will be available to order from the Atelier Ellis website or by visiting the Atelier Ellis studio in London which opens this May.
Address: Atelier Ellis, The Bottle Factory, 12 Ossory Road, Bermondsey, SE1 5AN. Opening Hours: Monday-Friday, 9am – 4pm
About Atelier Ellis
Atelier Ellis makes natural, breathable, bio-based paint and colour to help people tell their story of home. Founded by Cassandra Ellis in 2018, Atelier Ellis is a human-scale business that looks for reminders of humanity in everything we do. Atelier Ellis is an independent maker of colour, formulating, making, and selling our own exceptional quality paint.
The 120 colours that make up the Atelier Ellis collection reflect a new classicism that is neither minimalist nor traditional. Embracing a simple-useful-beautiful aesthetic, the colours are deeply rooted in the natural world, as well as personal memories, marks, and fragments.
Inspired by the way we live in nature, in cities and society, the distinctive shades are designed to create quiet, joyful backdrops to people’s homes and lives, helping them tell their unique stories of home in the way they choose.
www.atelierellis.co.uk | @atelier.ellis
About The Hepworth Wakefield
Designed by the acclaimed David Chipperfield Architects, The Hepworth Wakefield is set within Wakefield’s historic waterfront, overlooking the River Calder and The Hepworth Wakefield Garden designed by Tom Stuart-Smith. Named after Barbara Hepworth, one of the most important artists of the 20th century who was born and brought up in Wakefield, the gallery presents major exhibitions of the best international modern and contemporary art. It is also home to Wakefield’s growing art collection – an inspiring resource comprising outstanding works of modern British and contemporary art. The gallery runs engaging programmes for schools, families and local community groups to provide inspiring creative learning opportunities and a vibrant workshop, talks and events programme, including regular art fairs and markets.
www.hepworthwakefield.org
