New color schemes for your home and work space

New color schemes for your home and work space

By Pavan Kapoor

JAKARTA (JP): Current colors and shades are the trendsetters,
not only in the world of fashion but correspondingly within the
contemporary world of interior design as well.

People today are not only keen to pick a dress or shirt of the
latest color but are also looking for a little adventure when
doing up their offices and work spaces as well.

Color trends for the years 2002 and 2003 were the topic of a
discussion hosted by Decorous at the Deutche Bank building
recently. Futuristic color trends were unveiled accompanied by
informative commentaries by designer Carmanita and Balinese
architect Popo Danes.

They initiated an open discussion on color trends in Indonesia
and the world for the next couple of years.

In 1968, the market for varied colors for interior designers
was very restricted so that they were not able to benefit much
from changing color trends in the world of apparel fashion.

To challenge this, the ICA (International Color Association)
formally and officially introduced a set of colors in London that
would hold for the next 24 months. It has been thirty-three years
since this breakthrough with the reputation of the ICA creating a
strong link between the colors in the world of fashion and those
of interiors. It gave a credibility which perhaps the profession
of interior design yearned for.

Up until the 1980s, designing interiors seemed a frivolous
career. Interior designers and decorators do not, however, merely
play house and indulge themselves in an overdeveloped passion for
setting up homes and beautiful work spaces. They do a lot more
than flit about talking about "line" and "depth" and picking
fabrics for upholstery and cushions.

Their work encompasses a wide range of specialized knowledge
including structural engineering and basic, but important,
architectural principals.

To provide enlightenment on this marriage between architecture
and interior design, Decorous had invited Popo to speak on
interiors and the choice of coloring for them. "Choosing the
color scheme and type of texture is not the instantaneous result
of an impulsive, artistic creative flash but a decision that is
highly technical and well thought out before hand," Popo
explained. With the help of slides of Balinese structures, he
explained how the colors of the materials was all important to
the setting of the room that one wished to decorate.

It was interesting to see why one should never ignore the
individual taste that each person intrinsically possesses while
choosing interiors. One should stick to that taste as opposed to
going with something undiscovered. There is a taste in each one
of us, and you take it with you wherever you go. If you start
changing who you are, it's just as if you were wearing the wrong
clothing. There are too many people living in the wrong
environments.

Carmanita, well-known for her lycra batik, said she uses
natural plants abundantly, such as turmeric, pandanus leaves, and
fruits and berries to stain the fabric with color.

"Although it is usual to acquire inspiration from the European
market, one has to play it by ear when designing and choosing
colors for the people of Indonesia," she said at the Decorous
color trend event. "Every province will have it's own popular
shades and colors. Another reason we cannot adhere to the Western
colors is because Indonesia has no seasons and thus cannot follow
the winter colors."

Decorous introduced colors for 2002 and 2003 that are
basically divided into four divisions. Pick and Mix displays the
colors of green, yellow, red and black. The second is termed The
Delicatessen where the visual opulence of frostings and exotic
flavors are whipped up into an aromatic sundae. The third is
called the sushi bar in which the colors of the marine are
presented. Everything from shark's fin and squid ink to pearly
rice is used. The last is the teahouse -- the colors of which
mirror the fragrant and tranquil ceremonial beverage where all is
hushed and serene, infused with mint, saffron, rosehip and black
tea.

It became clear how interior design requires three major
skills: creativity, personal knowledge of architecture and the
desire to provide an environment where there is comfort and
ambience.

So although the trend slants towards modernism, it is
important to choose a harmonious combination of old and new.

Psychologically that is valid -- constantly relating to our
environment, tradition and culture reminds us of who we really
are before we allow ourselves to get lost in the world of trends
and fads.