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For anyone who has spent a long time renting, staring at the same landlord-approved beige walls and longing for injecting personal style to their home, Pantone's latest Colour of the Year might feel like a disappointing choice.

This time around, the influential color company has chosen a shade of white as its premier hue.

More specifically, the shade is called Cloud Dancer – a white characterized as "elevated" and "billowy" which "acts as a symbol of calming influence in a society rediscovering the worth of introspection".

It signifies the first time a pure white has been honored as the Colour of the Year, and it has generated significant controversy.

As stated by Pantone, Cloud Dancer "is not just a colour, it's a state of being" and reflects a shared urge to decelerate, recalibrate and find calm after years of sensory saturation.

But some commentators have branded the decision as "Pantonedeaf", arguing that promoting sparse and immaculate white spaces can feel disconnected from the more compact, lived-in homes the majority inhabit.

Others argue that presenting white as aspirational introduces subtext related to race, creating unease amid current societal dialogues about race and representation.

Sterile or Serene?

Designer One design critic says the backlash transcends aesthetics, arguing that white holds deeper meanings and is seldom a neutral choice.

"The color white sends a message," he says, influenced by a ten-year period of sparse star homes – most famously Kim Kardashian's austere home – that came to symbolize "affluence, control and removal from chaos".

He elaborates that white is "not about inspiration but being careful not to offend", with Cloud Dancer personifying "austerity, moral minimalism and the notion that neutrality signifies virtue".

The designer points to the pandemic as a defining period in how people perceive their homes.

"Almost instantly they transformed into our workspaces, refuges and sources of stability," he says, stating that against this backdrop, directing the Colour of the Year towards "further visual emptiness seems rather disconnected".

Rather than providing calm, he believes white now risks intensifying "a sense of desolation", particularly when combined with cool, clinical lighting.

'Hospital Vibes'

An interior designer, a UK-based design expert, agrees and says Cloud Dancer "is not perceived as a colour" and is "completely rejected for me".

Although it may suit highly minimal or structural spaces, she says pure white shades rarely foster calm in real homes.

"What looks serene in a professional photo can readily seem clinical at home," she clarifies.

"The color white may seem harsh and unforgiving and you don't want your home to give clinical feelings."

She continues that "living spaces should elicit happiness and be inviting and lived-in, and this hue feels quite removed from that."

Beaumont hopes that homeowners will reject the Pantone Colour of the Year in preference for "unabashed joyful interior design", using colour to showcase individuality.

The vice president of the Pantone Colour Institute commented that people "bring different feelings" to the significance of the colour, but it was chosen as it "integrates perfectly with everything around it, providing a refined neutrality that seems deliberate and adaptable".

Since its launch in 2000, Pantone's Colour of the Year has become a significant industry signal.

Previous selections have featured the hopefulness of Living Coral, the calm confidence of Classic Blue, the vibrancy of Viva Magenta, and more recently more gentle, feeling-based tones like a soft peach.

These hues extend beyond trend forecasts - they show up in clothing lines, beauty launches, interiors, packaging and even technology, shaping how products are sold and how consumers envision the coming year.

A style and trend expert, says Cloud Dancer is a "beautiful choice" and while it may appear basic, "this particular shade feels gentle and refined rather than severe".

In contrast to those who say the colour is boring, the expert sees it as "adaptable" and says it's best used in "sleeping quarters and living areas where you want a serene, restful atmosphere".

"Even if you don't want to redecorate, you can incorporate the colour into a room with cushions, throws and drapes."

Design expert James Mellan-Matulewicz says although he was surprised that Pantone's selection this year was "fundamentally the lack of pigment", it is a bit like vanilla ice cream, in that "everyone likes it but it's nobody's favourite".

He can see its merits, explaining that white can work especially effectively as a background for architectural details like panelling and curved entries which is a "rising style in modern homes".

In fashion, white has long been a basic rather than a statement and as a Colour of the Year it presents a unique test to designers more accustomed to vibrant colors.

Luxury stylist A styling expert says championing white feels "less about novelty and more concerned with purpose", indicating a movement towards refinement after years of trend overloads.

"The color white compels designers and wearers alike to concentrate on form, scale and quality, there's really nowhere to hide," she clarifies.

But she adds that it also holds assumptions around self-image, lifestyle and privilege, stating: "When white is viewed as something only a limited subset of people can pull off, it becomes exclusionary."

She says the industry is already aware of the problematic connotations tied to celebrating white as an aspirational standard, particularly amid ongoing conversations about inclusion and approachability, and the true challenge will be whether "companies address that nuance honestly, or simply glamorize the colour".

A Reflection of the Times

Style consultant Another expert admits the choice at first surprised her, given Pantone's history of bold colours, but says it reflects a authentic change and fits within a broader sentiment of "quiet luxury