The Chromatic Turn in Fashion Environment: From Radical to Sensory-Experiential Design

This study examines the evolving role of color in fashion-related built environments, tracing its historical and conceptual trajectory from the radical chromatic practices of the 1960s–70s to contemporary applications within sensory-experiential design. Through a qualitative, exploratory approach integrating literature review and emblematic case studies—from Archizoom’s Superonda to Gentle Monster’s Aoyama store—the research highlights color as a multisensory, semiotic, and cultural agent. Findings reveal that color has transitioned from a compositional element to a dynamic medium capable of shaping perception, eliciting affective responses, conveying ideological stances, and structuring immersive brand narratives. The notion of the “chromatic turn” is introduced to describe this epistemological shift, establishing color as a central mechanism of design agency and being framed as a dynamic, multisensory medium through which fashion environments construct meaning, articulate ideology, and shape embodied experience.