Pantone has named PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer as its Colour of the Year 2026. This airy white embodies calm, clarity, and creativity, inspiring fresh starts across fashion, beauty, interiors, and design. Pantone will celebrate the colour with year-long artist collaborations and brand partnerships, promoting relaxation, simplicity, and innovation.
Pantone, the global colour authority and provider of professional colour language standards and digital solutions for the design community, has recently introduced PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer, a billowy white imbued with a feeling of serenity, as the Pantone Colour of the Year selection for 2026. An ethereal white hue, PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer serves as a symbol of calming influence in a frenetic society rediscovering the value of measured consideration and quiet reflection.
Similar to a blank canvas, Cloud Dancer signifies a fresh start. By peeling away layers of outmoded thinking, it opens the door to new approaches. The colour quiets the mind, encouraging true relaxation and focus, allowing thoughts to wander and creativity to breathe, creating space for innovation. Emphasising rest and the conscious act of stepping away from relentless demands, Cloud Dancer recognises that true strength lies not only in doing but also in being. The hue reflects a collective aspiration for contentment, fostering feelings of peace, unity, and cohesiveness.
“At this time of transformation, when we are reimagining our future and our place in the world, PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer is a discrete white hue oRering a promise of clarity. The cacophony that surrounds us has become overwhelming, making it harder to hear the voices of our inner selves. A conscious statement of simplification, Cloud Dancer enhances our focus, providing release from the distraction of external influences,” has stated Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director Pantone Color Institute.
“An airy white hue, PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer opens up space for creativity, allowing our imagination to wander and drift so that new insights and bold ideas can emerge and take shape,” has commented Laurie Pressman, Vice-President, Pantone Color Institute.
For the Pantone Colour of the Year 2026, Pantone will aim to help provide the blank canvas that Cloud Dancer provides by spotlighting artists across the creative community to create their own interpretation of the colour throughout the year. Launching a new creative initiative that celebrates and supports the artist community as well as colour enthusiasts, Pantone will release surprise limited-edition designs from artists across all areas of design, from graphics to fashion. This initiative is part of a broader exploration of commissioning art and celebrating creativity, highlighting the diverse ways colour can inspire and connect people. Each creation reflects the artist’s vision and oRers a fresh perspective on how art and design can engage audiences in meaningful ways.
For the first iteration of the project, Pantone is collaborating with Emiliano Ponzi, an illustrator, visual artist, and author, to create a limited-edition tote bag that showcases Cloud Dancer through his distinctive visual language, which combines conceptual depth with graphic precision.
OFFICIAL PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026 PARTNERS
- MOTOROLA x PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026
As part of its ongoing multi-year partnership with Pantone, Motorola is introducing a special edition of the Motorola edge 70 in Pantone Colour of the Year 2026, PANTONE® 11-4201 Cloud Dancer. This billowy white hue feels both grounding and ethereal, the perfect reflection of balance and refinement found in one of Motorola's latest design-focused devices, Motorola edge 70. As the thinnest device in its category, the Motorola edge 70 is a study in perfectly balancing elements, where craftsmanship meets performance in perfect harmony. Every detail has been considered with intention, from its hi-resolution 50MP cameras to its brilliant display, now paired with a refined vegan leather back finished in a quilted pattern, a tactile contrast to the soft glow of crystals by Swarovski and the calm presence of Pantone’s Colour of the Year 2026, Cloud Dancer. The result is a phone that allows creativity to breathe and focus to deepen, bringing peace back to our pockets, palms, and our digital lives. - PLAY-DOH x PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026
To celebrate 70 years of squishing, sculpting, and sparking imagination, the PLAY-DOH brand is proud to partner with Pantone to bring our iconic modelling compound to life in the Pantone Colour of the Year 2026 Pantone 11-4201 Cloud Dancer – an airy white that whispers calm and inspires creators to pause, breathe and imagine. Purposefully designed to reduce noise, restore balance, and create space to simply be, Play-Doh x Pantone Colour of the Year 2026 Cloud Dancer is a creative play tool that invites all ages to reshape how we intentionally engage with the world. For seven decades, the PLAY-DOH brand has been the creative canvas for millions, shaping imagination and fostering creativity. The partnership with Pantone to celebrate Pantone Colour of the Year 2026 continues this legacy, introducing a hue that embodies the limitless creative possibilities of a blank canvas where every great idea comes to life. - POST-IT x PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026
The Post-it® Brand is thrilled to announce its collaboration with Pantone® introducing Cloud Dancer as the centrepiece of our new Neutrality Collection. For the first time, we are featuring Pantone's Colour of the Year 2026 within a Post-it® Note colour collection, marking a significant milestone in our commitment to creativity and innovation. The Neutrality Collection, with its earthy and natural tones, invites users to embrace a sense of peace and reflection, at work or at home. Available in Spring 2026, this collection encourages users to declutter their minds and reconnect with their inner creativity. - COMMAND x PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026
Let your creativity roam free with Command™ Brand and the Pantone® Colour of the Year 2026 Cloud Dancer. This collaboration features Command™ Brand’s limited-edition Cream Speckled collection, inspired by Cloud Dancer’s soft, neutral tones — designed to help your walls keep up with your imagination. Damage-free hanging allows users to curate string lights like constellations, photos that tell unfinished stories, and inspiration boards that refuse to stay still. Rearrange as often as you like without consequence and make room for ideas that haven’t formed yet. - PURA x PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026
Pura, the leader in smart home fragrance, celebrates the Pantone Colour of the Year 2026—Cloud Dancer—with an exclusive fragrance that captures the hue’s luminous, airy spirit. Pura's innovative combination of smart diRusers, app control, and world-class fragrance development transforms a colour into the ethereal scent that invites radiance, calm, and clarity into every space, creating a truly immersive sensory experience. - MANDARIN ORIENTAL x PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026
As the oRicial hospitality partner of Pantone's Colour of the Year 2026, Mandarin Oriental is transforming into a place to touch the clouds with 10 unique interpretations of the campaign in its exceptional properties around the world. From curated Cloud Dancer afternoon tea sets and oxygenating spa treatments to luxurious stays high up in the clouds and Cloud Dancer post boxes for letters to Santa, there's truly something for everyone. Festive decorations in these locations will bring the hue to life in whimsical, creative, and elegant ways, oRering guests unmissable opportunities to see, feel, taste and touch this enchanting colour. Book your stay at participating hotels to relish the magic firsthand: Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London; Mandarin Oriental, New York; Mandarin Oriental, Boston; Mandarin Oriental, Geneva; Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong; Mandarin Oriental, Shenzhen; Mandarin Oriental, Pudong, Shanghai; Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo; Mandarin Oriental, Marrakech; and the newly opened Mandarin Oriental Downtown, Dubai. - JOYBIRD x PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026
Cultivating calm and relaxation, the exclusive Joybird x Pantone collaboration fulfils our longing for harmony at home with invitingly tactile fabrics that evoke serenity and inspire quiet reflection. The collaboration features PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer in new, deeply tactile fabrics, Soul and Karina, that transform simplicity into a sensory experience, elevating everyday moments into opportunities for reset. Karina is a beautifully textured fabric - combining silky eyelash and chenille yarns - that is exceptionally soft to the touch, while remaining inviting for everyday use. Soul is a luxe, textured chenille oRering a vintage feel and bringing depth and warmth to any piece it graces. PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer is customizable across 300 of Joybird’s modern silhouettes, including sectionals, sleeper sofas, bed frames, accent chairs, ottomans, pillows, and more. An assortment of curated accessories, like tables, lamps, rugs, wall décor and pillows, is available to create complete environments for measured consideration and peace, allowing your mind to wander and your creativity to flourish.
APPLICATIONS OF THE PANTONE COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2026
- PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer
A key structural colour whose versatility provides scaffolding for the colour spectrum, allowing all colours to shine. In a world where colour has become synonymous with personal expression, this is a shade that can adapt, harmonise and create contrast, bringing a feeling of airy lightness to all product applications and environments whether a stand-alone statement or combined with other hues. - PANTONE 11-4201 in Apparel
A key structural colour whose versatility provides scaffolding for the colour spectrum, PANTONE 11-4201 Cloud Dancer supports rather than shouts, presenting a contrast in colour that allows others to shine. A discrete white with an understated presence, Cloud Dancer acts as a conscious statement of simplification whether worn in a classic button-down, T-shirt, jeans and activewear, or in suiting, relaxed loose-fit pants and dresses or outerwear. Infused with a feeling of billowy softness that comes through in spongy, puRy silhouettes, oversized padding and rounded shapes, Cloud Dancer cocoons and envelopes, promoting relaxation and well-being. Textures ranging from down and foam-filled cloth, fluRy, hairy furs, plush and lofty wools gently swaddle. At the same time, with its aerated and vapourised appearance, Cloud Dancer lends itself equally to diaphanous and floaty chiffons and fluid jersey fabrics that are easy to wear and move in, flowing from day to night, season to season. - PANTONE 11-4201 in Fashion Accessories and Footwear
A versatile soft white, Cloud Dancer mixes eRortlessly with every colour, infusing each ensemble with quiet sophistication and comfortable elegance. Introducing feelings of freshness and modernity to fashion accessories, Cloud Dancer evokes gentle pleasure without overstimulation. Soft pieces from chunky knits to natural fibres wrap and conform, while hard structured accessories including fine and fashion jewellery, eyewear, belts, handbags, footwear and sneakers introduce an understated sophistication. - PANTONE 11-4201 in Beauty and Hair
Tied to simplicity, Cloud Dancer oRers a clean, modern base for making a statement of minimalist chic or for endless creativity when used as a base for art, with cut-outs, hearts, pearls, and shimmer. Whether you’re leaning into soft, dreamy pastels or high-contrast, statement-making details, white nails are the perfect way to keep things fresh, modern, and eRortlessly chic. Applied to the eye in liners, bold eyeshadow looks, or subtle brighteners, the addition of Cloud Dancer can be used to create modern, eye-catching styles that range from dramatic and artistic to minimalist and whitened. For a balanced look, pair Cloud Dancer with contrasting colours like black liner or complementary shades like pastels. When worn in hair, Cloud Dancer makes a fashionable statement, on its own or in colour blocking, especially when paired with a thoughtful, intentional personal style. - PANTONE 11-4201 in Home Décor and Interior Design
Just as in fashion, Cloud Dancer displays a conscious state of simplification, encouraging true relaxation and quiet focus for those seeking moments of disconnection and rest. With its expansive presence, Cloud Dancer invites a space where function and feeling intertwine to build atmospheres of serenity and spaciousness, providing a refuge of visual cleanliness that inspires well-being and lightness whether introduced in furniture or furnishings throughout the home. Infused with serenity, Cloud Dancer introduces a spa-like feeling into bathrooms and an open and spacious feeling in the kitchen. A key structural colour, Cloud Dancer adapts, harmonises and creates contrast, bringing a feeling of airy lightness to all product applications and environments whether used on its own, or combined with other hues. - PANTONE 11-4201 in Packaging and Multimedia Design
A minimalist statement with a high-end modern feel, Cloud Dancer expresses a refined pared-back aesthetic that makes the product and brand quality the focal point. A versatile shade that serves as the perfect contrast, Cloud Dancer allows all other colours to shine and pop whether in a digital environment or on a store shelf. A polar opposite to black, the yin and yang at the beginning and end, the combination of black with Cloud Dancer conveys sophistication and luxury. A natural white devoid of artifice, Cloud Dancer represents a more sustainable choice for the eco-conscious and can be used to communicate a larger commitment to sustainability using materials including recycled paper or moulded fibre.