This year, global color authority Pantone has selected two Colors of the Year. The shades—PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray and PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating—have been picked as an aspirational color pairing that conjures deep thoughtfulness and feeling as well as optimism. Illuminating is characterized by a sunny, yellow vivacity imbued with solar power, while the Ultimate Gray is emblematic of elements both solid and everlasting.
“The selection of two independent colors highlight how different elements come together to express a message of strength and hopefulness that is both enduring and uplifting, conveying the idea that it’s not about one color or one person, it’s about more than one,” explains Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. “The union of an enduring Ultimate Gray with the vibrant yellow Illuminating expresses a message of positivity supported by fortitude. Practical and rock solid but at the same time warming and optimistic, this is a color combination that gives us resilience and hope. We need to feel encouraged and uplifted, this is essential to the human spirit.”
Laurie Pressman, vice president of the Pantone Color Institute, adds: “The Pantone Color of the Year reflects what is taking place in our global culture, expressing what people are looking for that color can hope to answer. As society continues to recognize color as a critical form of communication, and a way to symbolize thoughts and ideas, many designers and brands are embracing the language of color to engage and connect.”
This is only the second time in more than two decades that Pantone has chosen two colors, instead of just one, as its Color of the Year.
