While the Pantone Colour Institute is known for its ability to forecast trends, it is clear that its selection for 2021’s Colour(s) of the Year are in direct response to the destabilising year that was.
Paired together, the stable, practical, and solid hue of Ultimate Gray is complemented by the vibrant optimism of Illuminating’s warm yellow tones. These hues were selected with a means to inspire, energise, and fortify people across the world who crave a brighter future, with strong foundations.
“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 colour combination that gives us resilience and hope. We need to feel encouraged and uplifted; this is essential to the human spirit”
Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of The Pantone Colour Institute.
The act of selecting two colours, instead of the traditional one, is a mindful statement. It is resonant of looking beyond the individual to the community; it isn’t about any one colour, but how that colour works in harmony with another to create a stronger, unified whole.
It is only the second occasion the institute, internationally recognised for its colour predictions and trend analysis, has selected two colours for the annual announcement. The first was in 2016, when PANTONE 13-1520 Rose Quartz and PANTONE 15-3919 Serenity were chosen to reflect the change in mindset around gender norms.
The unprecedented nature of this year also influenced the way in which the institute selected its hues. Typically relying on worldwide exposure to the latest trends in art, design, film, and fashion, members of the Pantone Colour Institute prohibited by travel bans and global border closures had to rely on their network of colour specialists, as well as a new frame of reference to ascertain the hues that aptly reflected the culture of the moment.
We now look to the art community to see how these hues will be integrated into artwork across the world. The hues are, of course, some of the oldest pigments in the world – yellow ochre dating back to 17,000-year-old cave paintings. Yellow was particularly favoured by several of the greats, from post-impressionist Van Gogh to modernists like Warhol and Mondrian. Paired with grey, it was used to contrast, highlight, and illuminate.
In Pantone’s selections we see the same notion; a desire to see a unified global community in 2021, stronger together. We look to the future with illuminated optimism, fortified as we see things in more than black and white, but all shades of grey.
