Why is the world losing color?

Is the world actually losing color?

• Many commenters feel everyday environments have visibly dulled: cars, apartments, chains, logos, Airbnbs, kids’ products, and “millennial gray” interiors.
• Others argue the article overstates it: museum-object data may be biased (survivorship and materials), and the color charts mainly show browns declining while pure grayscale grows.
• Some note more color in certain domains (modern UIs vs Windows 2000, RGB lighting, some EVs and European cars, Asian cities at night).

Economics, resale, and risk-aversion

• Neutral colors are safer for resale: cars, houses, rental units, and Airbnbs are kept bland to avoid turning off buyers.
• Manufacturers reduce SKUs and inventory risk by offering few “safe” colors; niche colors die out with low volume.
• People often avoid bold colors not because they dislike them, but because they assume others dislike them—creating a self-fulfilling gray market.
• Corporate landlords and developers cut ornament and color as “non-essential” cost.

Design trends, overstimulation, and “professionalism”

• One camp: riotous color is “visually exhausting”; modern taste prefers neutral bases with purposeful accents, to manage cognitive load and highlight what matters.
• Another camp: the man-made gray world feels deadening and meaning-stripped; nature proves that intense color isn’t inherently tiring.
• Minimalist, desaturated aesthetics are seen as “clean,” “professional,” and “trustworthy,” especially against a background of hyper-saturated advertising and screens.

Culture, class, and ideology

• Historically, pigments were expensive; color signaled wealth. Now that color is cheap, “clean” minimalism and flawless white/gray surfaces may function as new status markers.
• Several tie this to modernist/Loos-style distrust of ornament and “chromophobia,” where color is feminized, orientalized, or treated as frivolous versus rational form. Others think blaming Loos is simplistic and ignores neoliberal cost-cutting.
• Regional and generational contrasts: India, South Africa, Latin America described as far more colorful; East Asia and Northern Europe as cooler and muted; Gen Z said to be rebelling against “Apple store” blandness.

Media, tech, and grading

• Strong consensus that many contemporary films/TV and some games are over-graded: desaturated, murky, teal–orange, or HDR-flat, despite cameras now having huge dynamic range.
• Debate over whether this is a narrow “gritty drama” style or has bled into almost everything.
• Some see a parallel with audio “loudness wars” and older web design’s overuse of flashy color, followed by a corrective minimalism.

Counter-movements and personal choices

• Several people consciously buy bright cars, clothes, and interiors, or use RGB lighting, as a quiet rebellion.
• Others embrace neutrals but deliberately layer color accents to control attention and mood.