Dulux Trade
Colour Futures 2011
AkzoNobel is the world's largest global paints and coatings company and as such, colour is extremely important to us.
Read more about colour futures »
Our purpose is to 'Add Colour to People's Lives' by inspiring and enabling people around the world to decorate more easily and more often. We pride ourselves on our knowledge of colour anddesign and want to help our customers, consumers and the communities in which we work realize the uplifting effect that colour can have on their spirits.
Colour Futures is the result of ongoing international colour trend research, developed by AkzoNobel's Aesthetic Center. It provides the reader with global style and design trends and influences which are subsequently translated into colour palettes for use around the world.
Colour of the Year 2011
In keeping with our overall theme of 'Appreciation', we are looking towards qualities of freshness and openness.
The Colour of the Year is a light, airy, citrus yellow that symbolises a freer spirit, sense of fun and positive energy. This clear, clean and translucent yellow encapsulates a mood of hope and optimism - a carefree, vitamin packed shot of purity and freedom. The slight green edge gives it newness over egg yolk tones of yellow and perfectly reflects our appreciation of nature and man made materials, as it feels both organic and technological.
Though very different, it is surprisingly flexible and works with a huge array of related and contrasting shades to create colour schemes which are soothing, sparkling or challenging depending on how the tones are co-ordinated. Ideal combinations are true cool neutrals, deepest berry violets, crisp blues or airy sorbet pastels.
Colour schemes
For the first time ever you can now order a 'theme' pack for the colour of the year. The pack is made-up of two colour schemes created by the colour experts at AkzoNobel to utilise the colour of the year.
Colour scheme one
50RR 11/286
16BG 24/357
89YY 78/269
Colour scheme two
84YY 87/135
30GY 41/173
30YY 46/036
Colour Trends
ColourFutures™ presents one dominant trend, which this year is 'Appreciation' and five relating trends which stem from this one idea. Each trend is translated into a contemporary colour palette and from these one 'Colour of the Year' is selected - the single colour that best sums up the prevailing mood, attitude and fashion of the time
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The beauty of everyday life
What we failed to notice in our rush to have more choice is that the most meaningful things are often right under our noses. This theme harnesses the idea of local contentment, of satisfaction with what we already have as opposed to focusing on impossible goals and far away solutions.
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Finding the way
Defining directions, signposting new ways, navigating life and understanding context are ideas that have a basis in both our personal identities and the wider aspect of where we fit into a globalised world.
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Popup Pleasure
The time has come to smile again, to bring a sense of poetry and pleasure back into our lives in a way that is both charming and slightly childlike. We want a lighter approach, a gentler humour and a quirky creativity.
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Made with Love
This trend is as much about the joy of making something well as it is about the beauty of the end result. Here we take charge of creativity, share the experience of making and rediscover the delight and pride in production.
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Molecular Magic
We used to look outward for inspiration but what if we simply look closer at what is already here? What we see under the microscope is as alien, and in many cases, more intriguing than other worlds.
Colours
This year we see a continuing move towards colours that are cleaner in character and much more optimistic and hopeful in the feeling they create. Shades for 2011 bring joy and charm to our lives and create an overriding mood of clarity and freshness in all palettes.
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Reds
Soft strawberry reds are warm, comforting and easy to live with. The influence of yellow conjures up an image of ripe fruit, berries and summer sunshine.
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Oranges
Warm tans and browns are inspired by the natural tones of clay and wood - homely, tried and tested shades that feel authentic and trustworthy.
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Yellows
Fizzy pale lemons and limes are happy, animated shades that bring a smile to the face - light and playful they can lift and enliven even the darkest interiors.
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Warm Neutrals
Green tinged neutrals are inspired by natural clays and earth tones, intriguing delicate shades with a sense of timeless beauty.
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Greens
Subtle and greyed off shades are those found in the vegetable patch - enriching shades that feel familiar and nourishing.
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Blues
Vibrant turquoises and teals are influenced by sunny optimism and molecular organisms, which result in a palette which is both clear and bright.
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Violets
These very deep understated shades are reminiscent of minerals and shadows, colours of great character that do not need to flaunt their beauty.
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Cool Neutrals
Pure neutral greys are the colours of stone and concrete - architectural shades inspired by urban architecture, construction and planning.
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Colour Futures 2011 (9Mb)
Appreciation
The most important thing in life is to love and appreciate what you have
In an era when everything seems possible, we now yearn to return to a more relaxed and informal style of living. In a world with so much choice we seek simplicity and a more essential response to life and home on the one hand, and a more creative and carefree approach to how we spend our time and money on the other.
We now find a promise of sublime comfort and relaxation in things that we have taken for granted, that have been under our noses, close to every individual but seemingly commonplace - places, skills, relationships, emotions. We are more tuned in to the magic of rediscovered beauty and the continuity of concepts that have stood the test of time. Basic to our needs and preferences, they were ignored in favour of the ultra fashionable, the startlingly new and the stylishly innovative.
We are rediscovering collective values, working together and sharing the joy of achieving. Gone are the days where success was exclusively the reserve of star designers and celebrity culture, it is being replaced by more human partnerships, associations or groupings. Testosterone fuelled masculinity has given way to an age of femininity - the serenity of tea is increasingly replacing coffee culture; fruit and vegetable juice bars are appearing everywhere in response to our need for something more pure, honest and vital.
We need to find a new balance in our everyday existence between the closeness, simplicity and security of home and innovative technological frontiers. Meaning and truth can be found in humble objects, familiar surroundings, recapturing cultural roots and a balanced coexistence with the natural world. They can also be found in the temporary and transient; in not waiting for ideas to become permanent before enjoying them, but rather responding to the moment and finding instant joy in something less designed.
It's time to be content with what we have, to treasure and nurture it, to hold it dear and treat it with pride and care - to find our way forward to a more relaxed reality.
Order a colour chip
You can order a free A8 colour chip of 89YY 78/269 - ideal for colour references and presentations for you and your clients.
