Pantone’s Color of the Year for 2026 Is Its Most Divisive Yet

According to Laurie Pressman, vice president of the Pantone Color Institute, Cloud Dancer is meant to represent a “blank canvas” and “our desire for a fresh start.” To bring this concept to life, the institute is spotlighting several artists throughout the year, challenging each to interpret the Color of the Year through limited-edition works.

The noise of the world around us — from the news and social media to the fast-paced nature of daily life — was central to the institute’s decision. As Pantone Color Institute executive director Leatrice Eiseman shared, Cloud Dancer, in its near-absence of pigments, is a “conscious statement of simplification” that invites us to quiet our minds, hone our creativity, and free ourselves “from the distraction of external influences.” 

Is this choice deliberate escapism from politics, AI, economic uncertainty, cultural ennui? Pantone doesn’t say. But it has sparked quite a debate on the internet. The Daily Beast declared, “Pantone’s Color of the Year Isn’t Really a Color,” while Fast Company dubbed the pick “visual tofu.” Homes and Gardens took a gentler approach, calling the color “remarkably versatile,” and Veranda maintained that, at the very least, “white will never go out of style.”

As someone who has been on the interior design beat for over a decade, I find Cloud Dancer to be contradictory to our current moment. We were just getting over our cultural obsession with all-white kitchens, white shiplap, white bouclé fabric, and white cloud sofas. I’m not ready to go backward; I was thoroughly enjoying the maximalist, personality-filled, color-drenched interiors of 2025. However, I do think there’s a way to lean into Cloud Dance without sacrificing character and individuality or going fully beige and bland.

The institute has some ideas for how Cloud Dancer might be expressed in home decor and interior design, noting that the color “[builds] atmospheres of serenity and spaciousness,” whether woven into a space through furniture or painted onto walls. They encourage using Cloud Dancer to introduce “a spa-like feeling into bathrooms and an open and spacious feeling in the kitchen.” Indeed, a splash of light-reflecting white paint can make a space appear larger, and crisp white bedding feels restful and timeless. But to avoid veering into post-Great Recession minimalism territory, we’d suggest using Cloud Dancer for strategic balance and contrast. 

You can still go wild with bold or moody wall colors, but temper them with off-white elements, such as a plush armchair or a Carrara marble countertop. This will help even out the visual weight. You can also heighten a room’s contrast with the Pantone Color of the Year: Pair dark cabinetry with a white tile backsplash, or install bright blue built-ins beneath a white ceiling.

With Cloud Dancer as your neutral, grounded base, you are free to experiment with other colors from the six accompanying palettes released by Pantone. These range from soft pastels to shimmery metallics and punchy neons. The palettes are meant to show how adaptable Cloud Dancer can be, whether you prefer your interiors laid-back, energetic, or somewhere in between.

Previous picks for Color of the Year have really hit the nail on the head — last year’s Mocha Mousse instantly became the “it” color in interior design and fashion. It remains to be seen whether Cloud Dancer inspires the same enthusiasm, but there’s likely no need for you to rush out and buy a new throw blanket or marble tray in this “key structural color,” as Pantone puts it. Chances are, your home is quietly infused with this hue already.