Colour palettes sparking debate

A color argument that usually stays inside design studios spilled onto social media this week when one viral post pushed a saturated, layered “last great American” palette and pulled thousands of people into a fight over whether 2026 should look louder, richer, and less polite than the beige years that came before. (x.com) At almost the same moment, New Zealand artist Beverly Claridge was pointing readers toward Dulux New Zealand’s 2026 forecast, which leans the other way with Ethereal and Elemental palettes built around soft mauves, blush pinks, warm whites, greys, caramels, and earthy browns. (x.com) (dulux.co.nz) Dulux says its 2026 forecast has three named directions, and the split is unusually clear: Evoke is the maximalist option, Elemental is the grounded neutral option, and Ethereal is the pastel option. (dulux.co.nz) Evoke is the closest thing in the official forecast to the viral mood board, because Dulux describes it as a “resurgence of maximalism and individual style” with vintage references, rich tones, and dramatic accents including grape, blue, and red. (dulux.co.nz) Elemental is almost the inverse pitch: Dulux builds it from warm whites like Whale Bay and Duvauchelle, then adds layered warm greys, golden browns, and charcoal for what it calls stillness, structure, and depth. (dulux.co.nz) Ethereal softens even further, with Dulux describing gentle greens, mauves, and blush pinks like Snowdon Forest, Different Pink, Mask, Wainui Beach, and Lake Camp as “playful, uplifting, and quietly luxurious.” (dulux.co.nz 1) (dulux.co.nz 2) Claridge’s April 8 post shows why those softer palettes travel well online: she ties Ethereal to “dreamy escapism” and Elemental to “warmth and stability,” then places her own abstract paintings against them so the forecast reads less like a paint brochure and more like a livable mood. (beverlyclaridge.com) This is happening in a wider color cycle where even the official “color of the year” machinery is splitting. Design News Now reported backlash to Pantone’s 2026 pick, Cloud Dancer, while paint brands and designers kept drifting toward jewel tones, earthy greens, and warmer neutrals instead. (designnewsnow.com) Sherwin-Williams landed on Universal Khaki for 2026 and framed it as “essentialism,” a usable midtone neutral tied to durability, craft, and nature-based warmth rather than spectacle. (sherwin-williams.com) So the debate is not really bright versus muted. The real split is between one-room theater and whole-home atmosphere: a bold palette like the viral post sells identity fast, while Elemental and Ethereal sell calm, continuity, and a house that can carry art, timber, stone, and daylight without fighting them. (x.com) (dulux.co.nz) That is why both sides can win in the same year. Dulux’s own 2026 forecast contains both the exuberant Evoke palette and the softer Elemental and Ethereal palettes, which is another way of saying clients are not choosing a universal trend so much as choosing the story they want their rooms to tell. (dulux.co.nz)