Personal profile
Research interests
I work primarily on colour, perception, early modern philosophy and phenomenology.
Biography
After studying at Cambridge and University College London, I started at York in 2007. One main focus of my research is the philosophy of colour. In a Naïve Realist Theory of Colour (Oxford University Press, 2016) I defend a naïve realist (or ‘primitivist’) theory of colour, according to which colours are mind-independent properties of objects that are distinct from those described by science. My work on colour is part of a wider interest in the philosophy of perception. I also work on related questions in the history of philosophy, including theories of ideas in the early modern period and the work of the phenomenologist Merleau-Ponty.
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Perceptual averaging on relevant and irrelevant featural dimensions
Quinlan, P. T., Allen, K. M. & Cohen, D., 10 Jan 2025, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Attention, Perception & Psychophysics. 14 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile -
Scientific or naïve? Perceptions of direct and indirect realism, and why they matter
Allen, K., Fischer, E. & Engelhardt, P., 15 Oct 2025, In: Philosophy and Phenomenological Research. 28 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile -
Fragmented and conflicted: folk beliefs about vision
Fischer, E., Allen, K. M. & Engelhardt, P., 23 Feb 2023, In: Synthese. 201, 33 p., 84.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile
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Margaret Cavendish's Mind Lab
ALLEN, K. M. (Principal investigator)
1/10/25 → 31/12/27
Project: Other project › Miscellaneous project
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Art and the Limits of Perception
RICHARDSON, L. F. (Principal investigator), ALLEN, K. M. (Co-investigator) & NOORDHOF, P. J. P. (Co-investigator)
20/07/16 → …
Project: Other project › Miscellaneous project
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Purpose and Procedure in the Philosophy of Perception
ALLEN, K. M. (Co-investigator), Logue, H. (Principal investigator), NOORDHOF, P. J. P. (Co-investigator), RICHARDSON, L. F. (Co-investigator) & Maccumaill, C. (Co-investigator)
30/09/15 → …
Project: Other project › Miscellaneous project
Activities
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Midnight Mastermind
WHITE, S. (Interviewee) & ALLEN, K. M. (Mentor)
13 Mar 2026Activity: Other › Media (Other online)
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National Lottery Open Week Hidden Gems
ALLEN, K. M. (Speaker) & WHITE, S. (Speaker)
11 Mar 2026Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Outreach (e.g. schools, community groups)
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Volunteer Training, Bolsover Castle: Cavendish's Mind Lab
ALLEN, K. M. (Speaker) & WHITE, S. (Speaker)
11 Mar 2026Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Outreach (e.g. schools, community groups)