Why the internet is mad at Pantone The white hue that according to the company will define 2026 has sparked quite a controversy

In 2025, politics and pop culture have become one and the same, in America as well as in Europe. It’s true that it has always been this way - the government influences satire which influences culture and vice versa - but in a post-woke, post-canceling era, the line separating one from the other has become indecipherable, trampled on by both politicians (see Trump) and pop (see Trump). Everything is a joke, yet everything is also serious, so even the most superficial topics end up under the magnifying glass of public critique. Among the latest is Pantone’s color of the year for 2026: Cloud Dancer.

Why was the color of the year criticized?

Pantone has been selecting the color of the year since 1999, a tradition born for the new millennium that aims to somehow anticipate the overall energy characterizing the upcoming year. In all these years, however, the company had never chosen a white shade - a color that at this moment, in a sociopolitical context marked by religious wars and the return of conservative currents of thought, seems to allude to the racist ideologies that were prominent in 2025 in the United States and beyond.

The criticisms aimed at Pantone online accused the company of elitism and classism, as well as insensitivity toward the victims of events that marked 2025 in America (including the new deportation policies promoted by the government nationwide). Last summer, American Eagle's campaign went viral for the same reason, as its star Sydney Sweeney (a white, blonde-haired, blue-eyed actress) spent much of the spot talking about her so-called «good genes».

Pantone’s response and the meaning of Cloud Dancer

In response to the uproar online, Pantone published a letter signed by Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, explaining that the choice of the color of the year has never been linked to politics, but to the mindset associated with a particular historical period: «Cloud Dancer is about relaxation, reflection, and creativity. The Pantone Color of the Year selection process is rooted in an understanding of humanity, drawing on close observation and global trend analysis to recognize what is emerging across the design landscape. It considers the moods a color can evoke and the experiences it can shape in design.»

For the company, Cloud Dancer represents «a subtle shade that offers a promise of clarity.» In 2026, Pantone imagines more an idea of peace than political-religious conflict, more a moment of pause than the relentless continuation of dramatic international turmoil. Hoping that is indeed the case, it must be remembered that Pantone is above all a brand, so one of the main goals behind the choice of the color of the year is to sell. In this light, it becomes clear why the choice fell on a white shade: in a period of tension like this, consumers tend to gravitate toward minimalism, simplicity, and, above all, seeking calm.

Examples of Cloud Dancer in pop culture

We already have a preview of how central white will be in 2026. The LUX imagery, Rosalia’s new album, revolves around this pale shade to highlight how saints and nuns influenced it. Or on the runway, with the latest Fashion Weeks hosting several collections prominently featuring white, including Valentino and Gucci, perhaps signaling the new beginnings the brands are embarking on under the guidance of their fresh creative directors Alessandro Michele and Demna.

Art is also paying great attention to the color white and minimalism. In Paris, the Bourse de Commerce (by Arnald Pinault) presented Minimal, an exhibition dedicated to the minimalist art movement from Japan to France, a spread of works in essential colors, displayed in suggestively white rooms. In short, rather than trying to rub salt in the wound, it seems Pantone and many other artists are trying to give us a free space to breathe, meditate, and retreat in silence. At least for a while.