Benjamin Moore’s 2016 Color of the Year was officially announced last week: Simply White.

Huh?

With memories of the earthy Marsala (Pantone’s 2015 Color of the Year) and vivid Coral Reef (the Sherwin-Williams 2015 choice), how could a plain vanilla get such an exalted ranking?

“White is transcendent, powerful and polarizing — it is either taken for granted or obsessed over,” Benjamin Moore Creative Director Ellen O’Neill said in the company’s announcement. The release also said that this particular color was chosen from the company’s more than 250 selections of white paint because “it was the most neutral, level and constant in the various light sources used in today’s design environments.”

Reaction in the design community was not surprise, but rather a bit of caution.

Miles Redd, a New York designer known for his richly hued interiors, was rooting for a daffodil yellow or maybe a shade of blue. “I don’t think of white as a color. But I know it is. I live in technicolor,” Redd said. “Most people do go for white paint. Color is something people don’t always know how to handle. I guess it’s not surprising given that white sheets and white towels are the number one sellers, too.”