A Danish Colour Odyssey: Ptolemy Mann at House of Finn Juhl
In the calm light of the House of Finn Juhl, colour takes centre stage. Not the cool neutrals we so often associate with Scandinavian design, but something far more alive. Deep blues, sun-warmed ochres, and saturated reds that seem to recall another era. Among the sculptural furniture and clean lines of Juhl’s modernist interiors, the woven surfaces of Ptolemy Mann’s new works pulse with quiet intensity, suggesting that the Danish aesthetic might have always been brighter than we imagined.
After Finn - Gesamtkunstwerk I, II and III, 2025. Hand dyed and woven viscose, 180 x 60 cm each.
The exhibition, Ptolemy Mann: A Danish Colour Odyssey Vol. II, on show until 19 December 2025, marks the latest chapter in Mann’s long fascination with colour and its emotional resonance. For several years, the British textile artist has been studying the work of architect Finn Juhl and painter Wilhelm Lundstrøm, two key figures of Danish Modernism. Her discovery was unexpected: “The artworks were made in response to the idea that the Danish and Scandinavian aesthetic abroad has become synonymous with a desaturated colour palette" she says, "I was surprised to discover that the work of Lundstrom and Juhl had a vibrant, Modernist colour palette that was prominent in both their work."
The Blue Hour (Winter Solstice), 2022. Hand dyed and woven viscose, 64 x 64 cm.
From this revelation grew a series of woven and painted works that blend craftsmanship and theory in equal measure. Mann’s meticulous, hand-dyed threads shift gently across each piece, blending tones in a slow rhythm that seems to suspend time. The result is a kind of woven light — colour distilled into its most expressive form, quietly engaging the viewer in a study of movement and perception.
Ptolemy Mann: After Finn, diptyc, 2025. Hand dyed and woven viscose, 75 x 120 x 7 cm.
At the centre of the exhibition stands After Finn (Gesamtkunstwerk 1–3), a sweeping triptych inspired by Juhl’s ceiling design for the United Nations Trusteeship Council Chamber in New York, completed in 1952. Mann’s response translates Juhl’s architectural precision into the language of the loom. The work holds both restraint and movement, structure and softness in a dialogue between space and surface. Her palette nods subtly to the fabrics currently used in Juhl’s bespoke furniture, deepening the conversation between contemporary craftsmanship and mid-century vision.
Thread Painting (Juhl’s Threshold), 2023. Acrylic on hand dyed and woven viscose, 43 x 43 cm.
Educated at Central Saint Martins and the Royal College of Art, Mann has spent more than twenty-five years refining her chromatic vision, often described as “Chromatic Minimalism.” Her practice straddles painting, weaving, intellect, intuition, colour and light, with each thread a meditation on how hue can move between emotion and structure.
In A Danish Colour Odyssey Vol. II, Mann's work reminds us that Scandinavian design was never truly monochrome. Beneath its calm surfaces, the colour was simply waiting to be seen.
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Further Information:
Ptolemy Mann: A Danish Colour Odyssey Vol. II, is on show until 19 December 2025 at the House of Finn Juhl, Copenhagen.
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Image Credits:
Lead: Portrait of Ptolemy Mann, 2025. Photo Credit: Circe Hamilton
All further images as credited in photo captions.