Crown Paints has revealed three new colour palettes that explore how architects and designers can respond to a built environment being reshaped by AI, changing patterns of living and working, sustainability and growing demand for more inclusive, adaptable spaces.
Fragmentation, Belong and Hope form Crown Colour Insights 2027/28. They have been developed by an exclusive panel, including architects known for creating people-centred spaces, sustainability leaders, visual culture specialists, experts in neuro-inclusive design, and public affairs professionals who track economic and political shifts. Through immersive discussion, these contributors examined how geopolitical instability, shifting work patterns, housing pressures and environmental concerns are influencing the spaces people need today and tomorrow.
Rather than predicting short-lived trends, the palettes translate wider social, technological and environmental shifts into practical colour directions for the spaces in which people live, work, and connect.
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Fragmentation is a contrasting palette of contemporary blues, muted berry tones, and earthy neutrals that reflects a world shaped by geopolitical uncertainty, rapid technological change and the growing influence of AI. It balances the technical with the tactile and the engineered with the human. In workplaces, hospitality, and design-led residential schemes, structured contrasts and grounding tones can support focus, adaptability, and emotional balance.
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Belong brings together a palette of understated neutrals and expressive accent colours that reflect the demand for flexible, multi-functional environments. It’s designed to support spaces that can change and adapt to a multitude of uses and users. The palette combines warm earthy tones, soft natural hues and restorative greens to create spaces that feel open, inclusive and connected. The result is a versatile colour language that helps designers produce environments where everyone feels they belong. The palette works particularly well in residential, workspace and community settings.
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Hope is a soft, restorative palette of muted greens, mauves, clay pinks, warm neutrals, and a gentle blue accent. It reflects a growing desire for truth, transparency and authenticity, The shades inspire craftsmanship, circular thinking and a more practical approach to sustainability. Rather than celebrating constant renewal, Hope champions materials and spaces designed to age, adapt and endure – embracing material honesty and lasting value. It is particularly suited to residential, workplace and hospitality environments where longevity, transparency, and thoughtful design choices are increasingly important.
The palettes were developed following a cross-disciplinary insight session in which experts examined the social, technological, cultural and environmental forces likely to influence the built environment over the coming years. Crown's colour team then translated the strongest themes into three adaptive colour systems designed to support different environments, moods and behaviours.
Contributors included Atul Bansal, founder of Sheila Bird Studio; Clare Calveley, Senior Lecturer and Deputy Programme Leader at Manchester School of Art; Davina Ajana and Jacqueline Bourke of Getty Images; Magda Mostafa, co-founder and principal of StudioTM and creator of the ASPECTSS framework; Robyn Landau, co-founder of Kinda Studios; and Yorgos Chalkias, Head of Sustainability at Hempel Decorative, alongside Crown's colour and architectural and design specialists.
One clear thread running through the discussion was adaptive agency: a growing desire for greater control over the things people can influence at a time of continued technological, economic, social and environmental change. Rather than waiting for stability to return, the report explores how colour and design can help create environments that are more flexible, legible, inclusive and responsive to different human needs.
Kathryn Lloyd, Colour Specialist at Crown Paints, says:
“Colour should be a key consideration throughout the whole design process, it can influence how a space is understood, experienced and used.
"The conversations behind Colour Insights highlighted some significant shifts facing architects and designers – from the proliferation of AI and the growing tension between artificial and authentic experiences, to the availability of space, inclusion, sustainability and the need to design for greater adaptability.
"Fragmentation, Belong and Hope translate those forces into practical colour directions that can be interpreted across different environments rather than prescribing a single aesthetic. Together, they are intended to support more confident, purposeful specification and help create spaces that work harder for the people using them.”
Each palette includes carefully selected Light Reflectance Values (LRVs) to create clear tonal variation across commercial and shared spaces, aiding wayfinding and intuitive navigation. The palettes also recognise the importance of sensory-aware design, particularly as one in seven people live with neurodiversity in the UK. They use colour alongside light, texture, material and spatial layout to support focus, wellbeing and connection.
The full Crown Colour Insights 2027/28 report, palette imagery and further application guidance are available at:
https://professional.crownpaints.com/colour/insights/
https://professional.crownpaints.com/knowledge-hub/contact-a-colour-expert/
https://online.flippingbook.com/view/515378868/
