BRIGHTON — The Royal Pavilion, never one for subtlety, has added another layer to its visual drama. This spring, the seaside pleasure palace throws open its doors to COLOUR, a new exhibition that doesn’t so much complement the Pavilion’s interiors as amplify them — teasing out their original excess with a contemporary wink.
Curated by Dr Alexandra Loske, a historian of colour and a longtime scholar of the Pavilion, the exhibition explores our shifting relationship with colour — as science, symbol and sensory experience. From Newton’s prisms to Matisse’s saturated cut-outs, the story of colour is a story of how we see the world, and how we choose to shape it.
The Pavilion, built in stages for George IV in the early 19th century, is an ideal host. Designed by John Nash, it blends Mughal and Chinese motifs with Regency flourishes in a visual language that’s almost psychedelic in places — lacquer reds, palm motifs, dragons climbing chandeliers. Nothing here was meant to whisper.
Image courtesy of Brighton & Hove Museums
Lois says, “I wanted to create an artwork that feels full of life and something that lifts people’s spirits and draws them into a sense of movement and energy. Pathways of Joy is all about stepping into that flow and feeling the colours and shapes come to life around you. Nature is always changing. Its colours shift and blend, and I wanted to capture that same feeling using colour to bring joy and make the space feel truly alive.”
Out in the gardens, Brighton-based artist Lois O’Hara has painted a sweeping rainbow path that leads to the Pavilion’s entrance. Her sinuous shapes and vibrant palette are unmistakable, creating a kind of soft choreography for the feet — an invitation to move, to follow, to look closer.
Inside, the exhibition spills through the palace’s rooms. The Banqueting Room has been reimagined as a surreal feast — not of food, but of pigment. A long table holds jars of pure colour, sculptural dishes that border on the fantastical. Elsewhere, soft lighting and curated sounds guide visitors through rooms that feel at once historical and strangely alive.
Image courtesy of Brighton & Hove Museums
Alexandra Loske, Curator of the Royal Pavilion, says: “Brighton’s Royal Pavilion is one of the most unusual and pioneering historic buildings of its time. It’s always been a masterpiece of colour. This exhibition lets visitors experience it in a new way – immersing themselves in the shades and textures that made it a sensation in the 1820s and continue to today.
Several contemporary artists have been invited into the fold. Milliner Stephen Jones contributes a one-of-a-kind hat, somewhere between fashion and sculpture. Karen Hsu has created a paper flower installation that rises like a field in bloom, echoing the patterns beneath it. Zack Mclaughlin’s iridescent Bird of Paradise seems poised to take flight at any moment.
Emma Bestley. Creative Director and Co-Founder of YesColours says: “‘Pathways of Joy’ is a vibrant celebration of the movement and energy of colour, perfectly complementing the bold, expressive spirit of the Royal Pavilion. We’ve helped bring this vibrant vision to life with our sustainable paints – proving colour isn’t just seen but felt. We hope this artwork sparks joy, creativity, and a deeper connection to the beauty around us”.
Even the often-overlooked kitchen has been pulled into the narrative, transformed into a tactile play space for children. And in the Music Room, visitors are invited to ‘hear’ colour through a meditative sound installation — not an attempt at spectacle, but at synaesthesia.
Image courtesy of Brighton & Hove Museums
At its best, COLOUR doesn’t just adorn the Pavilion — it animates it. It draws out the building’s long flirtation with sensation and invites a new generation to think about colour not just as pigment, but as emotion, memory, meaning.
The exhibition runs through 19 October 2025. It is supported by YesColours, a sustainable British paint company whose ethos — that colour can heal, provoke, comfort — finds an unlikely but fitting ally in one of Britain’s most eccentric architectural experiments.
Lois O’Hara: Pathways of Joy is on view until 19 October at Brighton’s Royal Pavilion
©2025 Brighton & Hove Museums
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