… Blue, Green, and a beautiful selection of Neutrals as presented by Sherwin Williams at the COLORMIX 2012 live presentation. My own personal haven.
I love the fact that employees of the company are paid to travel the world seeking global color trends that relate to all levels of design- from art, fashion, furniture, to paint colors.
And today I admit, I am a lover of trends. Some will wince, spit, roll over, accuse me of not being a “true” color connoisseur, ha ha, but I have one question for you- would you hire a designer who appeared wildly out of style and disengaged with the world? Didn’t think so :)
See, there’s something to staying current. This does not mean I talk you into the color of the moment. Nope, it’s always about what works in your space. But I truly believe worldly influences are important, interesting, and relevant to design always.
So without further ado, I would like to share with you the highlights of this presentation. The BIG colors headed down the pipeline and where they come from. I thought sharing my actual notes as scribbled in a dark room would be more interesting than paragraphs, so here goes…
And I promise, you will see these colors emerge! I’m already noticing them in retail.
• All colors are inspired by Earth and the global shift towards sustainability (which is here to stay).
• texture is the “new bling” :)
RED
• 1st color used in cave paintings
• hardest pigment to make
• full range of shades from orange/red to red/violet
• haven’t seen red this prominent since the 1980’s
• a symbol of spirituality
• red hair
• inspiration from the human circulatory system
BLUE
• major inspirations- water and denim (fabric of the American worker)
• lack of water on Earth has water on our minds
• floating home developments in response to rising ocean levels
• tons of blue on the runways
• blue and white are huge in dinnerware
• azure, cobalt, cerulean
GREEN
• color of nourishment
• original meaning- to grow
• seaweed, algae and moss are an important inspiration as we consider them as alternate energy sources.
• aerial views of Earth and it’s shades of green.
• moving away from the ever popular yellow/green to a true green
• olive green in interiors and on the runway
NEUTRALS
• natural linen
• wheat, khaki, cream, porcelain, weathered wood, earthy clay
• from cool gray to warm gray
• stone and sand
• gray, beige, taupe and ochre
So interesting! View the video clips here… Happy Monday readers.
(thank you Clido Meireles for Tate Modern, Real Simple, Martha Stewart, and vi.sualize.us for the images)
