Colour Trends for 2020

Colour Trends for 2020 by Asian Paints

Colour trends for 2020 by Asian Paints, ColourNext is the most decisive voice on colour in India. Collaborating with the finest experts from a wide range of disciplines – architecture, interiors, fashion, sociology, advertising, F&B and media – Asian Paints ColourNext puts together a comprehensive forecast of colours, materials, textures and finishes for those who design for India.

Every year, ColourNext identifies one colour that captures the essence of the time as “Colour of the Year”. This year’s ‘Colour of the Year’ is “Curiosity” – a modern, clear shade of blue brimming with energy and inspired by azurite, the copper mineral ore. It energizes us with optimism to persist with our focused pursuits, and be the best version of ourselves. Curiosity lets us experiment, be undeterred by failure, and brings us closer to the answers we seek.

The four colour trends for the year 2020 are Potent, Mystique, Blend and Sonic

1. Potent: Amplified experiences in mini packages

There has been a shift in how society perceives luxury. There is a growing appreciation for sparsity – a prioritization of undiluted experiences over quantity. This is rooted in the awareness of what’s what and what’sin, and having the resources to buy into an idea- be it the latest super-ingredient or a limited drop by a niche brand.

Redefining luxury, Potent offers an amplified experience, a powerhouse packed with intensity like a nucleus. Rooted in knowledge, it represents the shift in our preference to partake in fewer but more concentrated experiences. Potent is in essence, amplified experiences in mini packages for thoughtful consumers.

The ‘Potent’ colour palette :

Potent has a pure, clean, monotone colour palette with pops of contrast. The purest of pure is epitomised by white. The shades of green represent abundance, vitality and wealth as a metaphor for the potency of nature. Contrasted by the shades of red, the clarity of this palette leaves a lasting impression.

2. Blend: Blending the disparate to create a new whole.

As our skills, our expertise and the ability to implement our most challenging ideas have expanded, so have the boundaries of our imagination. No single discipline today exists in isolation or out of our reach. A scientist could be a designer, a coder or a choreographer. An individual can possess equal mastery over non-associated subjects – that’s the new normal. Diversity has found its way into every industry, forcing us to radically rethink how we perceive expertise.

The blend is a new pursuit of creativity, where disparate fields merge to create non-vanilla experiences and the sum is always greater than its parts. Led by the outliers, Blend challenges the ideas of form, function, perception and bias that once restricted creativity.

The ‘blend’ colour palette:

Colours in this palette converge in unusual yet harmonious ways symbolising diversity. A blend of blue, purple-pink, yellow-green, faded cyan and grey, the colours picked are intentionally in-between and can’t be clearly classified as one or the other.

3.Mystique: Inspired by symbols and stories of the past

 Mystique is a visual manifestation of our desire to explore ancient wisdom, practices and philosophies. Be it for reasons of self-actualisation, therapy or our everlasting cosmic curiosity. Mystique traces a gradual behavioural shift wherein spirituality is no longer tied to religion. Anaesthetic inspired by totems and ancient symbols of mysticism, the visual, spatial and material qualities of Mystique are mysterious and magnetic.

The Mystique colour palette:

Mystique transfixes you in a magical, meditative gaze with a colour palette made of the elemental colours of wood, earth, fire, sky and water. Stark colours like bright orange, blood red, midnight blue and black, draw you in; while earthy shades of light and dark brown soothe the eyes.

4.Sonic: Expanding the human potential through sound

Sonic explores how we engage with sound to expand our potential and explore the unseen dimensions of our mind. While our urban environment pushes us to the limit of our hyper-engaged state, we humans still yearn to grow further – acquire new knowledge, build new capabilities, explore new frontiers. The sense of sound presents us with a relatively under-utilized pathway to do so. While we work, cook, exercise, meditate or sleep, sound accompanies us as a personalised companion. Dynamic or calm, undulating or rhythmic, sound helps us disconnect, relax, learn, energise and enhance productivity.

The Sonic colour palette

It is imperative for a vacuum to exist before sound can produce the desired result. The greys and beige in this colour palette represent this silence while the blue, pink and orange represent calm, joy and activity.