From the monthly archives: January 2010
With its beginnings in last century’s modernist movement, contemporary design
focuses on structural line, neutral colors with a few bold accents, and texture. Imago Dei finishes are the perfect complement for contemporary design with its clean, uncluttered look. Contemporary design offers an immense opportunity for creativity, giving designer and craftsman a chance to apply new materials and old materials in new ways.
Metallic finishes such as silver, gold, bronze and copper play off the metal accents in modern furniture. In the sample featured at left (#761), a silver leaf applied in casual grid over a dark forest background maintains an honesty to the media and has a deep richness that is not fussy or overbearing. This is dramatic in a dining, powder room or as an accent wall or ceiling.
Texture is key in contemporary, whether it is metal, wood, plaster, fabric or glass. Natural clay as a type of wall finish has a visual and tactile texture inherent in its application. Clay has the ability to work with old-world decor as well as the latest avant garde. With its subtle coloring and eco-friendly benefits, it also has a variety of finishes available—either rough to burnished smooth or anything in between—makes it a natural choice for a fresh contemporary look.
Patterns in contemporary design are typically geometric, but this custom branch design brings a fresh, organic element to the room that is anything but old-fashioned. Applied with over 20 different custom stencils in an embossed technique using mica plaster, the branches have a dimensional texture that is raised from the background just slightly.
Pantone has chosen Turquoise as the Color of the Year, specifically 15-5519, calling it an “inviting, luminous hue.” Pantone forecasters say it combining the serene qualities of blue and the invigorating aspects of green. Turquoise is a color that “most people respond to positively. It is universally flattering, has appeal for men and women, and translates easily to fashion and interiors.” Turquoise straddles the cool to warm temperature scale and so pairs nicely with any other color in the spectrum. Turquoise enlivens neutrals and browns, complements reds and pinks, and creates a contemporary vibe with yellow-greens.
Others in the know say the new year in interior design will see a new focus on tints and tones of purple with a lingering look at yellow. A natural complementary scheme when used together, the yellow is optimistic and cheerful in nature while rich plums and vibrant violets are global and exotic. Purple has long been associated with royalty. “Purple has been with us for a while now, but the big story today is that we’re seeing purple as a neutral for the very first time,” said James Martin, president of Color Marketing Group. “This purple is browner and grayer, a neutral we can love long-term.”
The environmentally friendly palette of neutral browns, grays and greens are a continuing force in interior color trends with pearls, taupes and grays coming to the fore.
http://www.sensationalcolor.com/colorforyourhome/blog/
http://www.pantone.com/pages/pantone/Pantone.aspx?pg=20705&ca=4
From everyone at Imago Dei – we wish you a happy and healthy new year. Our glass is more than half full and we’re looking forward to a decade of creativity and success.
