To celebrate, here is a poem by Sharon Morris, which we included in the 2017 Slade Material Museum exhibition ‘Blue From Iron’ by Scientist in Residence David Dobson.

Sharon Morris
The purpose of blue

But it’s the colours I miss, don’t you see?
the lapis sky and fair cerulean blue
of ocean, the precise shivering hue
of your laugh on a bright day, so clear.

Whatever the light, lavender appears
to shave blue from grey, the way I knew you.
I’m dead-heading the daisy - though it’s futile -
sweeping leaves and weeding ‘volunteers’.

My eyes close - the way  whales slip from view
between the waves -  I have to let you go.
I still wear that specific shade of turquoise -

you looking out at the Pacific Ocean -
the way blue sky screens emptiness, its purpose
forgetting or holding on.  Is this beauty?

Sharon Morris is Deputy Director (Research) and Head of the PhD programme at the Slade.