It seems like every year, life just gets more overwhelming. There’s more information to know, more work to do, more spaces to clean, and it feels hard to find a moment to take a break.

That’s why this year, Glidden has chosen Artifact as its 2027 color of the year.

“When everything feels like a lot, your life should not,” Ashley McCollum, Glidden’s paint color marketing manager, tells The Spruce.

And she’s absolutely right. Artifact is the ideal simple backdrop for whatever you want your space to be; minimalist or maximalist, farmhouse or modern, this smoky blue is the perfect reset color.

The Perfect Reset Color

All the recent home trends have been so focused on minimalism, white kitchens, leaving as small a footprint as you can in your own home. But even if that’s what you’re looking for, your space doesn’t have to be devoid of color.

Without bringing in any unnecessary drama, Artifact folds in color while maintaining simplicity. It’s a perfect backdrop that can stay in the background if you want it to, or come forward with a pop if you don’t.

“It’s confidence without the drama and calm without the snooze. It’s the color of reset, but without erasing your personality,” McCollum said in a press release. “It’s fresh, optimistic and lets people design a space that reflects who they actually are, and not who they’re expected to be.”

If you want to add this carefree color to a soothing bedroom wall or ceiling, it doesn’t resist. And if you want to make it stand out, it’ll give you a hand.

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Breaking the Rules

With all of the overwhelming information we’re fed every day, it’s no wonder people are sick of being told what to do. And useless design rules are no different.

Instead of leaving zero imprint on your own space in hopes of a vague notion of resale value down the line, Artifact lets you break the rules without worrying about these things—on your own terms.

“Consumers today want color that feels like their call, not a design rule. A smoky blue like Artifact behaves like a modern ‘choose your own adventure’ color that doesn’t force a story or a specific design style onto you,” McCollum said. “It lets you shape your own story depending on what you choose to pair it with.”

If you want to combine it with one of Glidden’s previous Color of the Year choices you may have invested in—like Warm Mahogany in this dining room—you can.

That’s the beauty of Artifact: It lets you decide exactly how involved you want to be. If you want to set it and go along with the ride, by all means. If you want to take it by the reins, just hold on tight, cowboy.