polychromy

American  

[pol-ee-kroh-mee] / ˈpɒl iˌkroʊ mi /

noun

1. the art of employing many colors in decoration, as in painting or architecture.

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polychromy British  

/ ˈpɒlɪˌkrəʊmɪ /

noun

1. decoration in many colours, esp in architecture or sculpture

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Other Word Forms

• polychromous
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of polychromy

First recorded in 1855–60; polychrome + -y ³

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

polychromy

While this new monochrome work — inspired by the expression of yin and yang — is more tranquil than Brown’s usual party of polychromy, his paintings still dance with an appealing musicality.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 20, 2023

She was one of some 17 reconstructions — made circa 2005-2019 — in a new exhibition, “Chroma: Ancient Sculpture in Color,” which evokes how the Greeks and Romans painted their sculptures, a practice called polychromy.

From New York Times ● Aug. 17, 2022

This spirit is in the polychromy of Islamic buildings, in the working of stone to look like tapestry, in the appearance of geometric evocations of infinite harmony in the middle of cacophonous towns.

From The Guardian ● Aug. 29, 2020

He promised that not even the most fervent champion of polychromy was going to start slathering contemporary paint on ancient objects.

From The New Yorker ● Oct. 22, 2018

The frontispiece attempts to suggest what the coloring of the Parthenon was like, and thus to illustrate the general scheme of Doric polychromy.

From A History of Greek Art by Frank Bigelow Tarbell

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