I decided to paint my house after moving in at the start of the December holidays. I wanted an off-white colour that would brighten the interior but still provide warmth. An interior designer friend recommended painting a few samples in different places in the house. A few other people also suggested off-white shades that had worked well for them in the past.
I thought that I would simply pop into my hardware store, grab a few small tins, and paint my samples. However, the samples did not turn out as expected. I detected a pink undertone in one, a grey in another. The samples in the darker rooms appeared completely different from those in the brighter upstairs rooms. One was downright depressing. I just couldn’t find what I had in mind. I realised that choosing an off-white was far more complicated than I expected.
So, I turned to the internet. I learned that undertones are determined by how much red, yellow, or blue is mixed into the white base. Then, another interior designer friend explained that the right mix couldn’t be obtained with very small samples – a single drop of pigment can make a difference. I needed bigger sample tins. Yet, my off-white remained elusive. The pink undertone turned green with the bigger sample size. Apparently, some paint mixtures are unstable. You can imagine my frustration.
Clearly, white is not just white. It is a lot more complex. For the first time, I came to understand the expertise in correctly choosing a paint colour. Meaning the colour you imagined and love.
I now have an admiration for interior designers I didn’t have before. Good designers do more than picture an interior; they know, on a granular level, what is needed to bring it to life. Among other things, they are experts in colour. Their experience is valuable when it comes to what will work in a space.
Like many, I assumed paint could be easily understood and mastered. With the internet, everyone imagines they can become experts in any field just by reading a few articles. The abundance of available information creates the impression that entire fields can be easily understood without hands-on experience and that we no longer need people to help us.
Only the experts know how complex their field is. Often, the more experienced someone is, the more circumspect they become - and the less certain they are about simplistic solutions. Reality has taught them too many lessons to believe in absolute outcomes
Yet, we live in a time where expertise is increasingly undervalued, if not disparaged. Yes, fresh perspectives from novices can add value or drive innovation, but expertise still matters. We need both – a deep understanding of a subject and a willingness to question it. We grow when we understand that many clever people have thought about a subject before us, and we learn when we engage with that expertise. The balance between expertise and questioning is often where the best ideas are borne.
My paint dilemma was a small, but powerful reminder: most fields are more complex than they seem. Indeed, white isn’t just white.
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Kind regards,
Sunél