Pantone has thrown all caution to the wind and has chosen two Colours of the Year for 2016 (a first for Pantone). They are predicting that next year’s wardrobes will be full of rose quartz and serenity.
Joined together, Rose Quartz and Serenity demonstrate an inherent balance between a warmer embracing rose tone and the cooler tranquil blue, reflecting connection and wellness as well as a soothing sense of order and peace, reads the Pantone website.
The colours are huge leaps away from the 2015 Colour of the Year, marsala, which Pantone described as dramatic and at the same time grounding. 2016’s pastel colours are said to provide of mixture of composure and relaxation.
The bold choice of two colours, as explained Pantone Colour Institute executive director, was inspired by gender equality.
In many parts of the world we are experiencing a gender blur as it relates to fashion, which has in turn impacted color trends throughout all other areas of design, Leatrice Eiseman said. This more unilateral approach to color is coinciding with societal movements toward gender equality and fluidity, the consumer’s increased comfort with using color as a form of expression, a generation that has less concern about being typecast or judged, and an open exchange of digital information that has opened our eyes to different approaches to color usage.
Some might feel that the chosen colours remind them of choosing the paint in a newborn’s nursery, but just think of how pretty these pastels will look in the spring and summer? Or even in the winter with a cozy scarf to match a darker coat. I’m definitely on board with these choices – what do you think of rose quartz and serenity?
