Paint manufacturers’ choices for Color of the Year pick up on the need for hopefulness as a new decade dawns.
By Diane Franklin
Just as we can anticipate a colourful holiday season—with twinkling lights, festive wrapping paper and multi-hued ornaments in abundance—the decorating aficionados among us are anticipating a colourful new year.
As 2019 melds into 2020, the pronouncements of paint manufacturers’ Colours of the Year will come to fruition. With the dawning of a new decade, many colour experts in the field are predicting a heightened sense of optimism. It is yet to be seen if these next 10 years will replicate the “Roaring ’20s” of the 20th century, but one thing is certain as paint manufacturers build their case for a colourful new year: This decade won’t start off as the “Boring ’20s.”
Benjamin Moore’s First Light
Benjamin Moore’s Colour of the Year is literally referencing the dawning of a new year with its Colour of the Year, known as First Light 2102-70. The paint manufacturer characterizes this soft, rosy hue as the backdrop for “a bright new decade,” which will feature a fresh palette and a revitalized spirit.
“We selected First Light 2102-70 as our Colour of the Year 2020 to represent a new dawn of idealism, design and living,” says Andrea Magno, Benjamin Moore director of colour marketing and development. “First Light 2102-70 reflects a new definition of the home—a shift in mindset from the material to satisfying the core needs in life: community, comfort, security, self-expression, authenticity and, ultimately, optimism.”
Other colours in the Benjamin Moore colour palette likewise evoke an optimistic spirit, including White Heron OC-57, an off-white; Crystalline AF-85, a grayish green; Windmill Wings 2067-60, a soft blue; Buxton Blue HC-149, from Benjamin Moore’s Historic Colour collection; Golden Straw 2152-50, a golden yellow; Thunder AF-685, a sophisticated taupe; Cushing Green HC-125, another Historic Colour hue; Oxford Gray, 2128-40, a saturated gray; and Blue Danube 2062-30, a deep, rich blue.
“From the saturated to bright and airy, all are easy to live with and easy to love—whether they stand alone, in a strong pair, or all cohabitate,” Magno reports.
PPG’s Chinese Porcelain (PPG1160-6)
PPG chose Chinese Porcelain (PPG1160-6) as its 2020 Colour of the Year as a means of providing escapism from today’s fast-paced technologically driven society. A blend of cobalt and moody ink blue, Chinese Porcelain imparts calmness and a spirit of hopefulness—another word for optimism—to offset the anxiety that often invades our day-to-day lives.
“The faster technology moves and the more convenience it offers, the more we seek activities, experiences and lifestyles that impart slowness and realness into our lives,” says Dee Schlotter, senior colour manager, PPG paint brand. “The need for simplicity and escapism from technology is, in part, the reason that consumers are craving blues like Chinese Porcelain that bring us closer to natural elements such as the sea and sky—creating serenity in any space.”
PPG describes Chinese Porcelain as a rich and traditional hue that provides the perfect backdrop for vivacious colours to pop. Alternatively, it can serve as a feature colour in a bedroom with crisp white bedding and crown molding to provide a sharp contrast. Or in a living room space, the colour can be layered with additional blues or paired with trending metallic finishes like Hushed Copper (MTL141) from the PPG METALLIC TONES™ collection.
Chinese Porcelain is the focal point for the broader PPG 2020 Global Colour Trends Forecast, brought to life through the following three trend stories, contained within the overarching theme of Flow.
On the Move: An upbeat and playful colour palette that feels simultaneously retro and contemporary. Mismatched hues like PPG paint brand’s Brilliant Blue, Turner’s Yellow and Bleeding Heart deliver joyful colour combinations that encourage self-expression from the bold and confident consumer.
At the Core: An earthy, botanical and sustainable colour collection that resonates with consumers looking for a balance between long-lasting and purposeful living. Bright hues such as PPG paint brand’s Crushed Pineapple and Carrot Cake feel rich when contrasted with Comfort, Life Lesson, Cool Concrete and Kangaroo Paw, which double as tinted neutrals.
In the Know: A palette that acknowledges the convergence of technology and earthliness by featuring raw, natural hues like PPG paint brand’s Cinnamon Spice and Brown Clay, as well as organic, oxidized blue-greens like Celestial Blue and Summer Breeze.
Kelly Moore’s KM5183 Sun God
You can’t get much more optimistic than yellow, and that’s precisely what Kelly Moore is promoting by naming Sun God as its 2020 Colour of the Year. The company describes its colour choice as “fiercely optimistic and independent…a brash, brassy yellow bursting onto the scene, interrupting white rooms and monochromatic schemes with a statement of personal passion and confidence.”
Kelly-Moore was inspired to designate this colour choice based upon the fact that bright yellow is showing up in so many places—on faucets, cabinets, upholstery, accent walls and elsewhere. In the case of Sun God, the company notes that this is a fresh accent colour, pairing well with neutrals in the same way that pink has done over the past few years—but in a bolder and more grown-up way.
Yellow isn’t the only story for 2020, according to Kelly-Moore. Mossy greens, both pale and deep, are being seen on living room walls. In addition, inky indigo blue remains a favorite for every room and various surfaces from walls and ceilings to cabinets and doors.
“I think we’re looking for reassurance and stability in our homes right now,” explains Shannon Kaye, Kelly-Moore’s colour marketing manager. “And yet we also feel more emboldened…to buck trends and defy definition.” This is the context in which saturated yellows, deep pinks, and warm caramel are giving today’s monochromatic interiors a bold burst of optimism and adventure.