Cloud Dancer - the 2026 Pantone Color of the Year
: ̗̀➛ hello everyone! I hope all is well with you. As finals season is coming up, I wish nothing but the best in all of your exams.
without further ado, here is one of our writers, Cassie, bringing us a piece on Pantone’s color of the year.
⍣ ೋ Cloud Dancer, a soft white meant to reflect tranquillity on society and encourage creativity, has been presented as the Pantone Color of the Year for 2026. Cloud Dancer represents the opening to peace and unity of the people, and a desire for a new start and ‘new approaches.’ It also encourages quietness, serenity, and relaxation. But is that really what the public wants?
Pantone received heavy backlash at the recent announcement and sparked controversy surrounding the colour. On social media platforms such as TikTok, many have expressed how the colour may not be the best decision during the current political climate. The public accused that this off-white colour symbolised white supremacy despite the years of fighting for diversity and inclusion. Some even say it may represent the rise in purity culture, as cleanliness and purity are often associated with the colour white. People also argued that this ‘bleak’, ‘boring’, and ‘dystopian’ choice of white shouldn’t even be considered a colour, but instead a shade. Commentators remarked that this indicated a recession due to its lifelessness and that it shows colour is no longer affordable.
Previously, the colours Peach Fuzz and Mocha Mousse were selected as the 2024 and 2025 Color of the Year. People speculated about the odd resemblance of skin tones in the colours, although Laurie Pressman, the vice-president of the Pantone Color Institute, reassured that “skin tones did not factor into this at all.”
Meanwhile, trending on social media is the comeback of the 2016 aesthetic and physical media. The year 2016 was all about colours that ranged from pastel shades to bold orange, 90s influence, and minimalist designs. With this nostalgic aesthetic brought back to life, many say that 2026 is the new 2016. Given this, many people were deeply disappointed in the lack of effort in following trends; the shortage of colour, life, and consideration completely went against the desires of the public. Pantone was dubbed tone deaf for this decision.
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