In December, Pantone announced its annual Colour of the Year as the reflective, resilient and calming 19-4052 Classic Blue, replacing last year’s 16-1546 Living Coral. Classic Blue is a colour that boosts confidence, contemplativeness and stability – and as we move into a new decade, we couldn’t be happier with Pantone’s choice! Step aside 16-1546 Living Coral: this year it’s all about pausing to reflect on the turbulence of modern life through this thought-provoking and reassuring universal favourite.

A sign of the times we live in and the need for our homes to be spaces of connection and calm, Pantone explains how Classic Blue highlights “our desire for a dependable and stable foundation on which to build as we cross the threshold into a new era”. As Leatrice Eisemen, Executive Director of the Pantone Color Institute explains, “we are living in a time that requires trust and faith” – so it was natural to choose a colour that provides a real sense of anchoring and foundation. But it’s not all about stability. Eisemen describes the colour as “a boundless blue evocative of the vast and infinite evening sky”, that urges us to “look beyond the obvious to expand our thinking; challenging us to think more deeply, increase our respective and open the flow of communication.

So, whether evoking an endless twilight sky or imbuing a little ‘laser like clarity’ into your interior, you can be sure this classic and elegant colour will never go out of style. Read on for our curated collection of inspired artworks and introduce this soul-enhancing, endlessly-enduring hue to your home.

ARTWORK EDIT: PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR, CLASSIC BLUE

REFLECT AND RECENTRE

One of the key things about Classic Blue, says Pantone, is its ability to ground whilst also encouraging deep thinking. Hanging a new artwork which serves as a visual reminder to help us have a moment’s pause to reflect and recentre, is a wonderful way to slow down the pace of everyday life. With this in mind and with its innate sense of stillness, we love Fiona Smith’s gorgeous still life – Offering Bowl.

Soothing landscapes are also a brilliant addition to a home that needs a little anchoring: how about Jafar Chalipa’s stunning acrylic Blue (main image) which celebrates the colour in a variety of tones. Likewise, Alvaro Petritoli’s Indigo Filtered Light is an innately soothing work, imbued with a sense of focus, helping your tackle your resolutions for the year ahead.

GET LOST IN STARRY SKIES

As Pantone states, Classic Blue isn’t all about resilience and clarity: it’s also about expanding our horizons and a sense of limitlessness. Imagery of hazy blue skylines and wide open skies help visualise this feeling: felt in Taras Koval’s stunning Cornwall and Mark Mackinnon’s endless Starman, a beautiful homage to the desert night sky.

Or, why not invest in a real celebration of a starry celestial night with Joe Webb’s wonderful Ascension from Liberty Gallery. With its quirky composition and brilliantly bright stars lighting up the canvas, you won’t be disappointed by this new addition to your home.

CONJURE A LITTLE MAGIC

Many artists have utilised the cool, sultry colour of Classic Blue to conjure a little magic within their canvases, as seen in work by the likes of enigmatic Rosie Emerson’s Parade or Jenni Murphy’s upbeat Sagittarius. Jenni uses the gorgeous deep hue of the sky as a backdrop to an intimate whimsical world filled with character and symbolism, which really captures our attention.

We can’t get enough of Kate Trafeli’s sensational The Mapmaker, which inspires a sense of the surreal through its unique composition and menagerie of interesting objects, colours and characters.  Here, the colour blue is used to create a more dreamlike, reflective space: adding a gentle light-heartedness to the colour’s sense of confidence and stability. This piece would provide an intriguing addition to any home.

DIVE INTO SEASCAPES

Finally, a discussion on the colour of the year would not be complete without considering how blue effortlessly evokes the sea. Like Classic Blue, there’s something enduring, endless and comforting about a seascape, in its myriad forms, which make it a very solid and reassuring style of artwork to own. There are plenty of options to dive into on our Online Shop, including Sandra Von Haselberg’s cool and graphic print or Pam Carter’s scenic Moored for the Night (first featured artwork). Or, for something a little more animated, why not invest in Jo Quigley‘s Evening Surf, who salutes all the action on the rolling waves in her fabulous painting.

We’re welcoming this rich, reassuring and restful colour into our homes with open arms and hope we’ve inspired you to do the same! For even more abstract, surreal or figurative options which celebrate Classic Blue in all its glory – follow the link below to see the full edit.

Main Image:
Jafar Chalipa, Blue, 2019, £835, acrylic, original, Capital Art London.

Featured art from first to last:

Pam Carter, Moored for the Night, 2019, £3000, oil, original, Art Agency.

Fiona Smith, Offering Bowl 1, 2018, £600, acrylic, original, Wychwood Art.

Alvaro Petritoli, Indigo filtered light, 2019, £3500, ink, original, The Art Movement.

Taras Koval, Cornwall, 2019, £300, acrylic, original, 752 Art.

Mark Mackinnon, Starman, 2016, £2500, print, limited edition, The Art Movement.

Joe Webb, Ascension, 2019, £195, silkscreen print, limited edition of 100, Liberty Gallery.

Rosie Emerson, Parade, 2015, £3800, cyanotype, original, DECORAZON gallery.

Jenni Murphy, Sagittarius, 2016, £750, acrylic, original, Prince and Pilgrim.

Kate Trafeli, The Mapmaker, 2019, £1750, acrylic, original, After Nyne.

Sandra von Haselberg, Blue, 2016, £295, print, limited edition of 25, ebb.flo.

Jo Quigley, Evening Surf, 2017, £1995, acrylic, original, Art Agency.