Pantone’s white ‘Cloud Dancer’ 2026 color sparks progressive backlash

Pantone’s selection of the shade white for its 2026 Color of the Year sparked a growing response over the weekend, comparable to the reaction to the Sydney Sweeney American Eagle ad.

On Thursday, Pantone, the media company that specializes in naming colors, announced “Cloud Dancer” as its 2026 Color of the Year, calling it “a symbol of calming influence in a frenzied society.”

“The cacophony that surrounds us has become overwhelming, making it difficult to hear the voices within.” Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. he said in a press release. “An expression of conscious simplification, Cloud Dancer improves our focus and frees us from external distractions.”

Eiseman and Pantone’s announcement Instagram accounts It received backlash from commentators and designers who suggested the choice was boring at best and politically charged at worst.

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“A friendly reminder that design and art is and always has been political…” wrote Anthony Bruno Interiors.

“In this social and political climate, choosing white really says something…” Rheefined Company designer Jason Rhee wrote.

“Choosing an almost white hue as the Color of the Year right now is difficult to separate from the larger cultural context we live in. As white supremacy loudly resurfaces in national leadership and politics, the symbolic color of the year highlights ‘white’ as feeling painfully tone-deaf. Color choices do not exist in a vacuum – they reflect who is in the room, whose perspectives are missing, and what messages are unintentionally amplified. I wish this decision had shown more awareness. Mx Domestic Fabric Store owner Matthew “A large portion of the world’s marginalized communities navigate every day,” Boudreaux commented.

Some media outlets also responded negatively to the color choice, suggesting that it could have political consequences.

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Progressive critics called the color choice “tone deaf” and claimed it was politically motivated. (iStock)

“The whole thing reads as if it was lifted from a late-night comedy skit. After a year of efforts by the Trump administration and corporations to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion programs, as well as aggressive immigration crackdowns, uttering the words ‘white is the color of 2026’ feels bold and, dare I say, out of touch.” Vanity Fair reporter José Criales-Unzueta wrote on Thursday.

Guard editors Emma Joyce and Nick Miller joked that the company was “Pantonedeaf”, noting that previous years also included colors such as dark beige “mocha mousse” and “peach fuzz”.

Washington Post reporter Rachel Kurzius also wrote: “White in decor is a dead neutral, but in a year filled with news of rising white nationalism, declaring white the color of 2026 might raise some eyebrows.”

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In response to the growing backlash, Pressman insisted to the Washington Post that the election had nothing to do with skin color.

The reaction was similar to an American Eagle ad featuring actress Sydney Sweeney that came under attack from progressive critics. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“Skin tones didn’t impact this at all,” Pressman said. “With Peach Fuzz and then Mocha Mousse, people were weighing in and asking if it was related to their skin tone. I think we were like, ‘Wow, really?’ we were saying. Because for us, it’s about, at a fundamental level, what people looking for that color might expect to respond to.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to Pantone for further comment.

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The controversy was similar to the growing outrage against American Eagle over its viral jeans ad featuring actress Sydney Sweeney titled “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans.” Critics accused the ad of promoting racial superiority and “Whiteness.”

Despite the backlash, American Eagle stood by the campaign.