The Math Behind Beautiful Color: David Aerne on Building Open-Source Color Tools

Welcome to the final episode of Season #12 of the PolicyViz Podcast! Thanks so much for checking out the show this season and I hope you enjoy your summer. I’ll be back this fall with more great episodes.On this episode of the show, I’m joined by David Aerne, a freelance developer and designer based in Zurich who has spent years building a remarkable collection of open-source color tools. We dig into the difference between color models, color spaces, and gamuts, and David explains why thinking about color in three dimensions—like navigating a cylinder—can make choosing palettes so much more intuitive. We talk through several of his projects, including Color Names (a curated list of nearly 32,000 community-contributed color names), Rampensau for generating color ramps, and the playful RYB-inspired explainer that simulates how physical, “printy” colors look on screen. David shares his philosophy that we should integrate the systems that generate colors into our work, rather than freezing a static palette and losing the creativity along the way. Whether you build dashboards, design slides, or just love playing with color, this conversation will change how you think about picking your next palette.Keywords: color theory, color palettes, data visualization, color tools, HSL, HSV, RGB, color models, color spaces, open source, generative art, color ramps, design tools, JavaScript, web development, pixel art, PolicyViz Podcast, David AerneSubscribe to the PolicyViz Podcast wherever you get your podcasts.Become a patron of the PolicyViz Podcast (https://patreon.com/policyviz) for as little as a buck a monthFollow David Aerne on Bluesky and X (@meodai) and explore his open-source projects at elastiq.chFollow me on Instagram, LinkedIn, Substack, Twitter, Website, YouTubeEmail: [email protected]