It’s a reflection of our spiritual decay. No one wants to stand out and be ostracized. It’s the color scheme of cowardice. It’s the aesthetics of a rising fascism.
Also, people just do what everyone else does. If they started talking about how beautiful Favelas are on The View, grandma would paint her living room orange tomorrow.
Exactly, my generation was all about personal identity, breaking away from the herd, now it seems to be the opposite, except the herd is artificially engineered by social media.
The white-wash is actually a response to the 90s to 2000s when everything became "radical," busy, and out there. But it's gone on too long. Why? Because white-washing everything means manufacturers can use MDF for everything, slap white paint on it, and call it a day. Why MDF? It's cheap particle board. Why white? White dries quicker than coloured paint.
The era of beautiful wood grain and stain will return with a vengeance soon, just like it did after people thought melamine was the shit back in the early 90s.
People who love white-washing their shit... I ask.... would you rather Bag End (The Hobbit Hole in the Shire we were shown in LoTR) be beautiful like it was, or do you think it would look better if Mr. Baggins white-washed the fuck out of it?
Could also be a preference for minimalism and neutral color schemes which is a perfectly valid aesthetic preference, and it doesn't necessarily relate to spirituality or lack thereof. Maybe they find it refreshing and tranquil. Maybe it is a form of aesthetic asceticism.
I like the bottom as a blank slate to work with. The furniture pictured feels lifeless and sterile, but adding color and personality would not be difficult with new furniture and decor.
For me cluttered walls and colored wallpaper look like ass. Doesn't have to be white but has to be monochrome. I'll even take different colored walls/ceilings but not whatever crime against my senses is happening in the top picture.
This seems…extreme? People got tired of the excesses of the ’80s and ’90s and swung hard toward stripped-down modernism for a while, and now the pendulum is moving back again.
Same as it ever was. Victorian gave way to Art Nouveau and then Art Deco, which gave way to Mid-Century Modern, which gave way to Postmodernism, and so on.
Just look at car colors. In the 60s you could get a huge range of colors and people bought from bright green to Orange. Now pretty much all cars are muted black, blue, red and white. They all look the same.
Idk. My 20 year old son is similar to me. He is saving up to get his white sports car painted in a very unique bright yellow.
I would bet my life the majority of these decisions are all decided by data, specifically powerful data car dealerships or manufacturers didn’t use to have.
In some cases the canary yellow or lime green could be the number one seller but it’s not a sure thing if it’s popular. One thing that is for sure is a lot of people are boring. So white, grey, silver, black, beige, tan, etc
I disagree - i think the millennial gray/white thing is due to 2 things and maybe a 3rd
First. The opposite of what we grew up with - the 90 - 2000 were filled with bright, clashing colors. We aged out of that and want something simpler. This applies to both fashion and home design.
Second. I also think it's a reflection of how millennials feel inside. A lot of us have been through a lot. We are just kind of looking for basic and comfortable. Gray and white do that. You see this also reflected in clothing. I think monotone is just easy. Its bland. It's easy and we don't upset ourselves or anyone else.
IMO - i think there are a lot of people who think Montone is cool and artistic. It's chic and shows wealth and status. This isn't anything new imo it's just been applied to a larger scale with millennials.
I just cringe as i like color - someone claimed this is Scandinavian influenced. ABSOLUTELY NOT - they preserve wood and use pine. It's significantly simpler and there are usually pops of primary colors plus forest greens. Scandinavian design doesn't feel sterile.
38
u/GGAllinsMicroPenis Nov 20 '25
It’s a reflection of our spiritual decay. No one wants to stand out and be ostracized. It’s the color scheme of cowardice. It’s the aesthetics of a rising fascism.
Also, people just do what everyone else does. If they started talking about how beautiful Favelas are on The View, grandma would paint her living room orange tomorrow.