Museums are often painted shades of gray or taupe because other colors show up well with that kind of background. The friend who pointed this out to me had painted her kitchen and adjacent family room taupe, and everything looks serene and elegant in there.
My room is a nice light beige with off white woodwork because it was that way when we moved in, and changing it now, even if I wanted to, would be a huge undertaking.
The mention that we don't live under Ott lights is a good point, but I think they do help us focus on how colors relate to each other. A lot of us use the CFL bulbs around the house, and some fluorescents really wash out colors. Some paint stores and home stores have a display where you can check your color swatches under a variety of different kinds of lighting. It's a big help because a color that looks good in the store's overhead light might not look the same when you get it in your room.