Everything you need to know about 2019’s design forecast

This year promises to be all about digging deep for inspiration and coming up with fresh new takes on the world we live in today

2019, Asian Paints predicts, will break all kinds of decor stereotypes. Whether it’s to create and live sustainably, transfer your dreams onto a design canvas, eschew the rules of adulthood or go back to the basics but give them a modern twist, here are the ColourNext trends that will dominate the design world throughout the year.

Harvest
The world we live in is overwhelmed by consumerism. The attitude of having what one wants, rather than what one needs, has put immense pressure on our environment. Asian Paints foresees that a culture of sustainability will replace this approach to living. Lab-grown bio-materials such as vegan leather and raw finishes achieved by graphenstone textures will lead to an exponential use of ecologically sound products that fuse organic materials with scientific innovation. As artist, Yoko Shimizu puts it, “Cultivating and growing things paves the way for ecologically sustainable and innovative next-gen technology.”

Enchanted
Surreal narrations and larger-than-life expressions of natural wilderness will find its way into living spaces. Asian Paints predicts that interiors will move away from clean, minimal, and austere styles, making way for Maximalism and constructed storytelling. Emphasis will lie on multi-dimensional imagery that speaks to one’s imagination, discoveries, and fantasies. Pavitra Rajaram, Lead Designer, Good Earth, decodes this by saying, “While technology has homogenised our lives, it has left us feeling vulnerable and reduced us to a group of aspects and traits. Enchanted is about breaking away from standardisation. It encourages us to use our memories, imagination, fantasy and nostalgia to design without worrying about interference from technology.”

F Luxe- first line
As Designer Maximiliano Modesti, founder of Les Ateliers 2M, an embroidery and textile production business in India supplying to leading international couture houses, puts it, “It is the uniqueness and the fact that it can’t be done anywhere else” that makes us covet luxury products.

Adulting
Gone are the strict rules that generations have lived by—college, job, marriage, kids, home, car. There’s a collective disdain among Gen Z for conforming to such conventional notions, choosing instead to ‘never grow up’. Pastry chef Pooja Dhingra exemplifies this trend. Talking about her journey, she say, “Having founded Le 15 Patisserie when I was 23, I think the lack of experience was my biggest advantage. You think you can do everything because you don’t have the life experience to tell you that you can’t.” Gen Z both expresses and celebrates its imperfections. Well-aware and informed millennials are mindful of breaking standard definitions and wear their inability to “adult” like a badge; going as far as to share and connect over memes that reflect this reality unabashedly on social media.