Ptolemy Mann (b. 1972) is a British artist whose work spans hand-dyed textiles, drawing, painting and hybrid woven constructions. Her early sensitivity to colour began in childhood, when she recalls placing two colours side by side and noticing their distinct emotional effects. This instinctive curiosity later became the foundation of a practice devoted to exploring how colour shapes perception and atmosphere.
For more than twenty-five years, Mann has pursued a rigorous investigation into weaving as a contemporary language. Her hand dyed and hand-woven panels are created through slow, precise processes that reveal tonal gradations, rhythmic shifts and a quiet architectural order. Rooted in textile history, these works speak to the wider lineage of modernist abstraction and colour theory, aligning her practice with twentieth-century explorations of structure, repetition and chromatic potential.
In recent years, Mann has brought weaving, drawing and painting into closer dialogue. Her hybrid works allow woven material and painted mark to coexist, creating surfaces where colour moves between fibre and pigment. Gesture, structure and atmosphere accumulate across these pieces, producing works that feel both precise and expressive. Mann frequently describes weaving as a metaphorical process: a way of constructing not only an image but an experience. In this way, her artworks invite viewers into a layered space where colour appears to shift, deepen and unfold over time.
Mann studied textile design at Central Saint Martins before completing an MA at the Royal College of Art. In 2019, Mann was commissioned by the Tate Modern Gallery in London to create a site-specific woven triptych called Circadian Rhythm. In addition, she has completed many site-specific art installations and has exhibited worldwide.