"Is there a way to fill each mesh element with a different color according to some pre-defined array of element colors?"
%Example
%Sample data
[X,Y] = meshgrid(-8:.5:8);
R = sqrt(X.^2 + Y.^2) + eps;
Z = sin(R)./R;
Specifying color for each element -
%% Black
%predefined array of element colors #1
C1 = zeros([size(Z),3]);
mesh(X,Y,Z,C1)
surf(X,Y,Z,C1)
%% Random colors
%predefined array of element colors #1
C2 = rand([size(Z) 3]);
mesh(X,Y,Z,C2)
surf(X,Y,Z,C2)
%% Red
%predefined array of element colors #1
C3 = zeros([size(Z) 3]);
C3(:,:,1) = 1;
mesh(X,Y,Z,C3)
surf(X,Y,Z,C3)
