Do you know what I thought of when I saw Pantone’s new colour of the year, Cloud Dancer? The guys at Pantone know exactly what they’re doing when they gather to make their annual selection. Trump’s purge of diversity, equity and inclusion content and roles from government, saw a literal erasure of colour in American workplaces, which neatly reflected what was happening in the sea. This is to take the colour choice literally though, and if I know one thing about the visual poets of Pantone it is that they trade largely in metaphor, enigma and vibe, so there are layers to the choice of a colour that is, really, an absence of colour. Cloud Dancer is the colour of ChatGPT therapy, or the sky at a time of crisis, or the moment you stop trying.

Source: Otago Daily Times January 16, 2026 14:48 UTC