Dulux has announced the 83 finalists in the 2024 Dulux Colour Awards, selected from a record 527 entries across Australia and New Zealand.
Up There’s Flinders Lane store by Kennedy Nolan. A house project in Sydney’s Ashfield by Greg Natale. SJB Interiors’ Richmond Studio. The Blacktown Animal Rehoming Centre by Sam Crawford Architects and Lymesmith… all among the 83 finalists in the 2024 Dulux Colour Awards, now in its 38th year.
“Architects and designers seem to have shaken off the gloom of the lockdown years and are expressing a profound sense of freedom through paint colours.”
The five-member judging panel, comprising design industry professionals from Australia and New Zealand, announced the finalists late last week. Andrea Lucena-Orr, Dulux’s colour and communications manager and a perennial member of the panel, says the judges were impressed by the “deeply considered, intelligent design pervading this year’s suite of finalists: hospitality venues and retail stores enticing customers through an understanding of colour psychology; primary schools with classrooms distinguished by colour to aid learning and navigation; and human-focused offices with masterful mood-setting palettes.”
The projects are also a reflection of colour trends. “This year, biophilia – the affinity of humans with the natural world – is a strong theme, with earthy colours playing a dominant role in interiors,” Andrea says. “Olive greens, warm greys, muted taupes and dusky blues came into their own across several categories.” Bold candy colours made plenty of appearances in the final projects, too. “Architects and designers, as well as their clients, seem to have shaken off the gloom of the lockdown years and are expressing a profound sense of freedom through paint colours that epitomise playfulness and joy.”
Bold colour palettes aren’t just confined to interiors either. “We’re also seeing bold graphics and murals in external applications, surprising contrast colours of pinks and blues, and a lot of textural effects. It’s thrilling to see that every surface, every element, inside and out, is being considered in the overall colour scheme when a designer or architect is devising the palette.”
Warm whites and soft beiges in sophisticated tonal plays were also trending. “Spanning textured sand through to deep buttery cream and crisp chalky porcelain, this palette is being explored fully in innovative, layered applications,” says Andrea. “Gone are the days of a single white or beige being specified. Nuanced shades of a colour are being utilised to create highlights, details and contrasts within the one project. It’s a sophisticated design strategy and it’s not confined to interiors.”
“Expanding our program to award innovative colour use in non-permanent projects acknowledges the level of creativity that is being applied in this sector.”
The projects are drawn from eight categories: Commercial Interiors – Public and Hospitality; Commercial Interiors – Workplace and Retail; Commercial & Multi- Residential Exteriors; Residential Interiors; Single Residential Exteriors; Student work (both Australia and New Zealand) and, a new category for 2024, Temporary or Installation Design. “Expanding our program to award innovative colour use in non-permanent projects, such as exhibition spaces, installations and display suites, acknowledges the level of creativity that is being applied in this sector. In fact, the sophistication of the projects in this category attests to the relevance of its inclusion.”
The winners will be announced at Bennelong at the Opera House during Vivid Sydney on May 29. More information here.
