© Akzo Nobel
"The books of the forties are big. Brown, green, beige. Shades of earth and bad printing. In the times of reconstruction, people had to fill the fire with something, they preferred walls entirely made of paper... The times of change were coming... On the geological section of our bookshelves, there are multi-colored volumes that define the layer of the sixties. The bindings are now tarnished. Beige with pink, beige with greenish, beige with blue - cloudy, like the eyes of a stooped old man...".
This is an excerpt from the book of the Polish graphic artist and prose writer Marcin Wikha. In his work "Things that I did not get rid of", he is nostalgic for the lost: for people who have passed away, objects that have lost their novelty, eras that have given way to the future. We remember people as long as we are able to describe them, more precisely, the people close to us are still around as long as we manage to create a perfect description of them, Vikha believes. As a writer, he clings to the pages with words, capturing memories, as if trying to hold on to the past. As an artist, he turns to color to create a powerful emotional association with this past.
© Akzo Nobel
This is the method used by any architect, sculptor, or artist. By creating spaces, objects, canvases, the master is able to "open a portal" to other places and periods of time. And to establish a connection with them, color is indeed a powerful tool. And although today we are by no means living in the era of "bad printing", we still need real, warm colors in which the Polish writer immersed his memories.
"All over the world, palettes close to natural shades are currently being used," says the art director of the Davis Casa salon. Faina Yerenburg.
Faina Yerenburg
Determining the actual color of the year is a process that requires an in-depth study of the social, economic and cultural demands of society. Every year, specialists of the Sadolin paint company, together with an international community of architects, designers, artists, psychologists and representatives of related disciplines, organize a three-day brainstorming session to exchange conclusions from their research and find a solution that would correspond to the general mood of the time.
"Ukraine is currently in a state of war, post-war Europe and America cannot boast of good psychological rehabilitation after almost two years of quarantine," explains Faina Yerenburg, "so the current color trends are completely justified and predictable, they are aimed at calming the nervous system and accumulating energy." So, according to the Global Aesthetic Center — a community of experts united by the Sadolin brand, the shade of 2023 should be Wild wonder. What does this color say and what effect does it have on the mental and emotional state of a person? Can he create the same portal to lost places and times? And how, by surrounding yourself with the "right" objects, textures and materials, can you restore the feeling of home and unity with nature?
© Akzo Nobel
The color of the earth
The Vynnykivskyi forest, which stretched on the hills of the Lviv plateau. The Honey Cave and the famous historical and natural monument "Devil's Rocks" are located here. On the shore of Lake Vynnykivskyi, surrounded by a huge green massif, where common and mountain pines, Japanese larches, spruces and red oaks grow, the Emily Resort complex with Terra restaurant is located, the interior of which was created by designers Volodymyr Nepiyvoda and Dmytro Bonesko, founders of YOD Group. They believe that in order to create a harmonious space, it is important to take into account the cultural context, the surrounding landscape and necessarily the nature of natural light. Inspired by the spectrum of shades of coniferous and deciduous trees, the designers found a color solution for the project. The interior of the restaurant has absorbed the colors of dense pine crowns, sandy-gray reeds on the shore of the lake, burnt grass, sheep's fur, loose forest soil after rain.
"Combining the colors suggested by nature itself is like using the Eyedropper tool in Photoshop, but on a real-life scale," the designers ironically note. This interaction of internal and external environments creates a special mood. "For restaurants, hotels and coffee shops, it is not so much about choosing shades, furniture, decor or textures as it is about creating an atmosphere, finding a certain balance between all the elements. It is important to tell a story and immerse guests in it," Volodymyr explains. "Natural textures and natural colors fit cozy and calm establishments that you want to return to," says Dmytro.
Dmytro Bonesco and Volodymyr Nepiyvoda
The noise of the wind or the loud singing of birds, the aromas of citrus trees or the salty sea, rocks or blooming fields outside the window - it depends on what colors, aromas and sounds the interior will "take" for itself. It is impossible to overestimate the influence of the surrounding landscape on well-being and even human health. Therefore, the atmosphere in the interior space depends on where the house is located, in which natural environment. But even in the middle of the concrete jungle, you can create a cozy green archipelago.
"Let the elements of nature into your home," urges Faina Yerenburg, "wood, clay, stones." According to Yerenburg, the home comes alive with the creation of floral compositions, because they cause lasting associations and immerse a person in that emotional experience where he felt happy. "It's a very interesting, subtle and creative thing," Faina explains, "looking at a bouquet, you remember the rustling of leaves, the first snow, or the singing of cicadas."
© Akzo Nobel
Yury Myrko, sculptor, co-founder of the Ukrainian creative workshop GORN Ceramics, believes that furniture, dishes, textiles, works of art made of natural materials have powerful energy, and the more such things are in the house, the more positive the atmosphere will be. "If things are not bought in a supermarket, but created by craftsmen with love for their work," says Yuriy, "they will literally charge the space, make it as comfortable and cozy as possible."
Yury Myrko
Designer and artist Lina Fedorenko believes that contact with nature in the interior can be achieved even without a bouquet on the table. And color plays an important role in this. In the shade Wild wonder from Sadolin, the colors of nature are combined. Here is a breath of frosty haze, and the velvet of moss, and the iridescence of ears of ripe oats, and the glare of the sun on the golden straw. It is a complex and elegant derivative of the beige palette, balancing on the border between gray, creamy yellow and soft olive. The company's experts call this color "the seed that creates miracles."
Lina Fedorenko
The connection of the beige color with nature is indicated by its name: the French word beige comes from the Latin beaticus. Baetica metonymically called the province of Spain, where wool of a special kind of light-sand shade was made. Italian bigio means the natural color of wool
© Akzo Nobel
Second skin
In the formula of the mutual influence of space and the consumer, Yuriy Myrko still considers a person to be a constant value. It is she who creates and charges the atmosphere, and not the other way around, they say, it is not the place that beautifies... For Yuri, the creation of harmony is connected not only with the combination of objects, textures and materials, but also with the energy of the person himself. The workshop in which he works is filled with his own thoughts, feelings, dreams, emotions, mantras.
"I try not to let unpleasant people in here and not have any negative conversations," Mirko explains. Yuriy believes that by endowing a home or a creative workshop with your inner light, you can turn an ordinary room into something magical. And this will be felt by other people who come to the house. "When my wife and I lived in a village in the Poltava region, we had a small house," says Myrko, "a stove, a clay floor, very simple furniture that I made with my own hands, a barn on the outside, but our guests were always impressed by the atmosphere." This opinion is shared by Lina Fedorenko. "A space can be a real place of power," Lina assures, "especially if it's created by a genius."
"Choose objects carefully in your home, especially now," advises Faina Yerenburg, "an accent piece in the house is a manifest object and should not be abused." Any focal element can be only if there is a general calm background. If everything in your interior screams, no one will hear the accent — it loves silence." "An object becomes an accent when the conditions are created for it," says Lina Fedorenko. First of all, it concerns the chosen place and the surrounding background. "You can create a scenario of eye movement, a scenario of emotional perception, which is probably the easiest to do with the help of color," notes Lina.
© Akzo Nobel
Color can really affect emotions, because this is how the human brain is arranged. "If a person does not like the color of the space, it can cause serious problems and even diseases: reduced immunity, irritability, insomnia, anxiety disorders," says Faina Yerenburg, "the calmer the range of our interiors, the more chances to stabilize the nervous system." .
In search of color 2023, Sadolin focused on mental health issues. In conditions of stress and information overload, a person has a desire to get rid of everything superfluous, which can be considered a kind of synonym for nakedness. In this case, the color that will promote "liberation" and purification should be the opposite of the visual noise. It is no coincidence that one of the shades of beige is called nude, which literally means "naked", i.e. clean, natural, natural. These are the properties of Wild wonder.
© Akzo Nobel
Complementing this basic color, Sadolin specialists have developed 4 palettes for designers. They all differ in emotional impact. Yes, The Lush color scheme is a story that tells about the natural wealth of the planet, offering cool shades of forests, fields, gardens and parks. Such a palette helps to create an atmosphere of family coziness in the interior. The Buzz palette consists of warm colors: soft powdery, pink, milky, red, and seems to refer to ripe fruits, fruits and berries. Such a range in space sets the mood for communication and openness. When choosing the colors for The Raw, the color experts were inspired by primitive natural textures and rough natural materials. Shades of wood, cinnamon, stones and sand sound in this palette.
Using such colors in the interior, you can create a space that will encourage creative work. The cold colors of The Flow are reminiscent of the colors of the sea, mountain slopes or morning fog. This is a story about the balance and peace that a person finds in his home and surrounded by nature. Using a range of natural pastel shades, you can create a not overloaded and at the same time very emotional space, which will become comfortable for the owner, like a second skin. "Interiors and architecture will respond to the request for healing when this request is verbalized," Lina Fedorenko believes, "because the task of architecture and art is dialogue." "By changing the interior, a person changes his own life," Yuriy Myrko is sure.
Photo: Elizabeth Lies / Unsplash
The color of nostalgia
In 1981, the Frenchwoman Anna-Marie Beretta creates her first beige double-breasted coat - the iconic MaxMara model number 101801. Later, Thomas Barberi presents a light camel gabardine trench coat, which will also become an icon. Updating the Camel shade already in the XNUMXst century, the modern Italian designer of the Burberry fashion house Riccardo Tisci dedicates one of his latest collections to the classic palette, symbolically returning to the roots. Thus, color is also used in order to create a strong connection with history, family affairs, and tradition.
Shades of yellow, beige and brown are old family photos, favorite movies and vintage cars. These are the colors of nostalgia, referring to things without age. Without the past, there is no future, and that is why, working to find the current shade of the year, Sadolin experts carefully study previous palettes and their influence on future color trends. In their research, they concluded that for more than 20 years, color trends have been shifting towards neutral, natural shades. Wild wonder was the culmination of this trend.
© Akzo Nobel
Not only shades can unite times and people, but also forms and individual objects, which become a kind of communicator through the language of art. "An artist transmits, broadcasts energy, embodies it in his work," says Lina Fedorenko, "I love history, old things, unusual objects, but only a person is able to put some special meaning in them. On the contrary, it does not work. An object becomes a talisman when it has a certain meaning for a person."
Yuriy Myrko says that his clients often become friends because they are interested in knowing more about the author who created the item that inspires them. "This is not an ordinary purchase and sale," Yuriy explains, "but an exchange of energies." I work and put something into my work. And this is the whole story. When you look at a painting or an artist's work, it may seem that it is easy to make, but one such work can be a whole life."
© Akzo Nobel
© Akzo Nobel
© Akzo Nobel
© Akzo Nobel
Of course, material things do not work miracles, but they can become carriers of very important meanings, which the artist fills them with. They will sprout like seeds, transmitting the energy of the creator. Spaces, objects and colors resonate with something that exists far away or is sadly lost. It seems like there's something magical or religious about it, but that's really how the power of love and the power of art work. Marcin Vikha is absolutely right: "We remember people as long as we are able to describe them, or rather, people close to us are still around as long as we can."
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