2021 Spring Colour Trend Highlight
During the month of March, the earth is dropping subtle cues, leaving us eager in anticipation. We feel hints of warmth, we see traces of green, we hear birds chirping in the trees. It’s enough excitement to inspire our Universal Fibers® Spring Colour Forecast.
Spring is a season long defined by growth and new beginnings. A perfect catalyst for stirring our senses, awakening our bodies and minds, and reminding us that the world will indeed, bloom again.
As Winter fades into memory and our gaze turns forward, we relish the ways we might embark on a journey of “newness”. As we watch the world slowly begin to reopen, a swell of optimism reaches us individually, and we begin to feel it collectively. We plant seeds, we open our windows, we make plans, we try new things.
Talk about symbolism. Spring is bursting with it.
Our latest forecast is guided by this momentous transition happening in nature and in life. In 2021, we’re soaking in colours that bring new energy into our lives but also keep us grounded. Colours that spark joy and intrigue yet also hold some comforting familiarity.
The power of colour is incredible. It creates a beautiful framework or point of reference as it connects us to nature, sparks an emotion, and gives meaning to a moment. It might inspire a memory or a thought. It can bring us calm or bring us vibrant joy, transitioning us from one state of being to another. Colour can truly change our day.
Spring is defined by growth and new beginnings—and it is also defined by colour.
FEATURED ARTICLE
This month as we take a look at color and trend influences, we were thrilled to sit down (digitally) with Montaha Hidefi, Colour Archaeologist & Colour Expert, for our Q&A series to get to know more about her - playing such a vital role in forecasting in colour.
Montaha is a colour forecasting panellist, writer, keynote and public speaker, who lectured on colour at such events as 100% Design, ChinaCoat, CoaTech, Dutch Design Week, Elmia Polymer, European Coatings Show, Expoquimia, Masterbatch, Neocon, Oxygen for Leadership, Powder Coatings Summit, Warsaw Culture Center and Taiwan Design Center, just to name a few. Montaha has participated as a colour forecasting panellist on many global organization committees including the Mix Magazine and NCS Color Forecast, and her articles on colour and trends have been published in many trade publications like PCI Magazine, Powder Coating, Powder Coated Tough, Product Finishing, Retail Environment, and PPCJ. Montaha is a published author of Groping for Truth – My Uphill Struggle for Respect (2018), The Role of Color in Design (2019), co-author of Colour Design: Theories and Applications (2012, 2017), and she currently serves as the VP of Color Forecasting for Color Marketing Group. Montaha is also a founding member and Guelph community Leader of the Canadian Freelance Guild and participates in many ‘Colour Talk’ collaborations across different industry segments.
Who is Montaha Hidefi and what lead you to becoming a colour forecasting professional?
“The finest phrase that describes me is “colour archaeologist”. An archaeologist studies human history through the excavation of sites and the analysis of artefacts and other physical remains. Similarly, I feel my role in the discipline of colour forecasting is to understand the present and interpret the future, by way of examining the past. The essence of the past is captured through research. It is like going through the biography of specific societal trends.
My work in marketing, colour, and trend advisory on an international scale, with several multinationals in the coatings industry, steered me in the direction of where I landed. I provide consulting services and advice on colour forecasting, and I am a writer and public speaker. My articles on colour and trends appeared in multiple trade magazines and you can catch up with me talking about colour in many virtual venues.”
- Montaha Hidefi
Versed for so long in colour forecasting, what are the main things you take into consideration when developing a new forecast for an audience of architects and designers?
“Before establishing a colourcast, as I like to call it, regardless of the end-user, I investigate and consider political, economic, societal, and technological mega and macro trends that may drive the forecast.
In addition, because the life cycle of colour is industry-specific, when it comes to the specifications market, such as architectural applications, I usually take into consideration whether the colour will be applied indoors or outdoors, the material the colour will be applied upon whether metal, fibre or other, the area where the colour will appear within the installation, the service years expected from a colour and the end-user.
My role is not limited to develop a colour forecast. To be able to provide calculated advice, I am compelled to understand the technical aspects of the colour application. The colourcast becomes a directional tool that allows the architect or the designer not only to be well informed but also to inform and guide their clients.
For instance, for exterior or behind-the-window applications, I would avoid pure yellow, pure orange and pure red, because they will end up fading after a couple of years due to the UV resistance nature of pigments used to achieve these colours. In such cases, I may either select a paler hue or recommend these colours to be used as accents for design articulation in areas away from direct sunlight.
Similarly, when it comes to façades and building shells, they are supposed to last for many years and anything that goes wrong with the colour used might have a great impact on the specifier reputation.
- Montaha Hidefi
Last question for now…
What are the top three things in your list that you look to for inspiration when developing a forecast?
“Inspiration is drawn from many sources. I like people-watching. I get motivated by the human interactions. Nature and plant-based food ingredients, their colours, sounds, and aromas stimulate my creative thinking. My muse, however, often appears in the wee hours. The flow of topics from research, and ideas from conversations done in previous days, gets processed and filtered to develop into perceptible concepts that I then transform into colour stories.”
- Montaha Hidefi
Stay tuned for more from Universal Fibers on our interview with Montaha Hidefi.
If you would like to connect with Montaha or to follow her work, you can find her on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and at montahahidefi.ca
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