The theme of this first trend is based on the idea that digital devices (screens) have the effect of lulling people to sleep. Medical research is beginning to show that excessive “screen time” and easy access to information via the Internet make people less intuitive, less creative. As a result, people intentionally try to find ways to disconnect themselves and their children from digital media, but with limited success. The experience of genuine human contact is becoming a luxury.

Four of the five theme colors offer something more or less than pure color. A smoky gray swirl effect called Why-FI? it suggests how difficult it can sometimes be to see things clearly, while The Golden Ticket is a translucent beige with subtle gold flecks to represent the luxury of human engagement. A similar idea lurks behind two tactile color swatches: No WI-FI is a soft green talc-filled chip that has a smooth feel, and Stupidify is bright magenta in a flexible thermoplastic elastomer.

The only pure color is Ciaokefai? (Italian slang for ‘Hey! What’s up?’), a very red orange that represents the excitement of real human interaction.

More and more, people do not believe what they are told. This can be irritating and frustrating, such as when deeply fake videos make it difficult or impossible to recognize the truth, or when they intentionally buy products they know to be counterfeit and seem like they don’t really care. Blockchain, which has made its way into a number of trends in the past, is also here, because it can guarantee accuracy and truthfulness. The so-called Deep-Web or decentralized web is another inspiration as society tries to find new and credible sources of truth, openness and authenticity.

Colors in this family of trends range from a warm yellow called El Dorado, named after the mythical city of gold, to Sheer Faux, which includes a swirl effect to make it look like marble, even when it’s clearly not the real thing. The Mask exposes the faux ‘greenwash’ bravado with a bright, obviously artificial green that references the movie starring Jim Carrey and the idea that a mask is a fake face. Representing the very opposite of false is Myrddin, a true dark blue named for the mythical Welsh prophet who went mad when he failed to deny the truth. The Naked Truth is a fleshy, peachy pink that is exactly the same color as the paper the trusted and authoritative Financial Times is printed on.

Recognizing this new science connecting design with emotion, the colors of Sense’s appeal are visceral and technological. Motus Intelligentia, Latin for ’emotional intelligence,’ is a pink coral made of a flexible thermoplastic urethane material. Then there’s Mona-Lise Me, which is a deep, translucent purple that pays homage to the enigmatic smile of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. A translucent dark green called Sweaty Art is shot through with a purple pearl effect, so any color pops out when viewed from different angles. D.A.B.E, which stands for Design Augmented by Emotion, is a warm copper. The same color can be seen as a random effect on a white chip called Yuan Bei, a Chinese term that refers to a feeling of complete and perfect achievement.

A translucent reddish brown with a metallic effect called Ant Attack was inspired by those cooperative ant colonies to create the Waggle Dance color, a honey color with a dark mottled effect, gets its name from the complex movements bees use to alert their hive mates about the presence and location of nectar or pollen. Deep Shi(f)t is a raging red that sounds the alarm, while the embedded blue, green and pink glow represents the complexity of today’s issues. Magurgur, a Sumerian word for a great ship from a Babylonian legend that predates Noah’s Ark in Hebrew tradition, is represented by a forest green flecked with gold metal. Molded in flexible thermoplastic urethane, it is intended to represent nature and refer to the idea of ​​saving the human species. Finally, a deep, dark purple has been dubbed the Stigmergence. The name is derived from the word ‘stigmergy’ which combines the Greek ‘stigma’ meaning mark or sign and ‘mergy’ meaning work or mechanism. It refers to a spontaneous coordination mechanism between agents or actions.