The Dulux Colour Awards celebrated its 40th edition this month, showcasing exceptional interior design projects that captivated audiences with their creativity and flair.
This year, two standout homes, one located in Australia and the other in New Zealand, captured the judges’ attention. The design teams behind these residences were praised for their innovative use of color, moving away from traditional palettes and demonstrating the transformative power of creative color application.
A strong sense of nostalgia permeated the entries, drawing inspiration from iconic 20th-century design eras, including the earthy 1970s bush aesthetic and the sleek lines of 1920s Italian modernism.
The judges noted that these homes evoked “strong emotional responses,” with their use of warm reds, yellows, and earthy hues, alongside painted ceilings and intricate details on architraves and skirtings.
This year’s judging panel comprised five of the most respected professionals in the fields of interior design, decoration, and architecture, each bringing their expertise to the evaluation process.
Apart from the residential awards, the event also recognized excellence in several other categories, including home exteriors, commercial interiors, multi-residential projects, and temporary or installation design.
‘Our long-running awards are regarded as a design industry vanguard, unique for their recognition of colour as an integral design tool,’ Dulux Colour and Design Manager, Lauren Treloar, said.
‘For 40 years we have highlighted the potential of colour to transform architecture and design and applauded those who most masterfully employ it to enhance our user experience.’
The View is a ‘seven-year reimagining’ of a home poised in the treetops of the Yarra Valley, Victoria. It was carried out by the team at Studio Shields
It is a mature palette, featuring unlikely pairings of chartreuse and olive, burgundy and earthy red, yellow and murky green, applied in subtle shifts throughout the home
Deeper, grounding tones are applied at lower levels and tempered with a powdered blue on the ceiling, with the elevating impact of a vast open sky
The View: Residential Interior (Winner)
The View is a ‘seven-year reimagining’ of a home poised in the treetops of the Yarra Valley, Victoria. It was carried out by the team at Studio Shields.
The unusual paint choices reflect the neighbouring landscape: chartreuse, murky greens and olives heighten the green bushland, while burgundy and earthy reds echo soil and aged timber.
‘Prioritising colour as the primary design driver in the reimagining of this home sees it determine not only the architectural language but also set the emotional tone,’ Interior Decorator Sarah-Jane Pyke said of the home’s rich, earthy palette.
‘The design practice chose hues for their “nuanced tonal depth and capacity to shift through calibrated tints and shades”, with hues of oxidised earth, eucalyptus canopy, dry grasses and shifting skies to create an interior that is symbiotic with its natural context.’
The colour, the design team explained, was ingrained in the structural and joinery elements as well so it’s presence would be ‘felt as much as seen’.
‘It is a mature palette featuring unlikely pairings applied in subtle shifts that build a cohesive tonal narrative throughout the home,’ Sarah-Jane continued.
‘The deeper, grounding tones are applied at lower levels and tempered with a powdered blue on the ceiling, with the elevating impact of a vast open sky.
Colour, the team explained, is ingrained in structural and joinery elements too, so its presence is ‘felt as much as seen’
The tone is precise, its placement unifying, and the cohesion that is struck with clever inclusions such as this demonstrates how colour can enhance everyday life
The unusual paint choices reflect the neighbouring landscape: chartreuse, murky greens and olives heighten the green bushland, while burgundy and earthy reds echo soil and aged timber
‘The tone is precise, its placement unifying, and the cohesion that is struck with clever inclusions such as this demonstrates how colour can enhance everyday life.’
The home, she concluded, tells a story about the way ‘paint can do the heavy lifting in a low-budget project with unremarkable structural beginnings’.
Waka Huia: NZ Grand Prix (Winner) and Residential Interior (Commendation)
Waka Huia, a ‘deeply personal’ renovation of a villa on Auckland’s harbour edge, has been shaped by the life of a couple who moved in more than 40 years ago.
The home is layered with artworks, artefacts and family keepsakes; the owner has a highly attuned eye for colour and an instinctive understanding of spaces for art, entertaining and daily life.
As a result, the team behind the project, Pac Studio, built on this. They used colour-blocking, unusual tonal combinations, soft pinks and strikingly modern choices following a ‘substantial renovation’ to resolve spatial issues.
Waka Huia, a ‘deeply personal’ renovation of a villa on Auckland’s harbour edge, has been shaped by the life of a couple who moved in more than 40 years ago
They used colour-blocking, unusual tonal combinations, soft pinks and strikingly modern choices
The kitchen walls and vaulted ceiling are drenched in soft pinks, paired with refined brass detailing and finely crafted, timber cabinetry
The latter moved the kitchen into an open, central position that strengthened its relationship to the dining room, verandah and garden.
The kitchen walls and vaulted ceiling are drenched in soft pinks, paired with refined brass detailing and finely crafted, timber cabinetry.
A sunny yellow hallway extends the warmth while the dining room adds character with colours inspired by a French railway station once visited by the owner.
Similarly, the living room is filled with personal collections and painted in hues chosen by the owner’s late wife – a touch the judges adored.
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A sunny yellow hallway extends the warmth while the dining room adds character with colours inspired by a French railway station once visited by the owner
The home is layered with artworks, artefacts and family keepsakes; the owner developed a highly attuned eye for colour and an instinctive understanding of spaces for art, entertaining and daily life
It was described as ‘truly evocative, rich with meaning and full of joy’
‘A villa blessed with stunning architectural features provided a characterful basis for this deeply personal renovation,’ judge Sarah-Jane said.
‘Intricate applications, colour-blocking and surprising juxtapositions, such as pistachio and lemon, demonstrate the nuanced decision-making, creative intelligence and technical composure supporting this bold palette.
‘Simultaneously generous and restrained, inspired and prudent, this project pushes us forward as designers and inspires us to see how different colours can unite in such an unexpected way.
‘Furthermore, anchoring the home in memory ensures the prevailing aesthetic is truly evocative, rich with meaning and full of joy.’
