Tag: Ultra Violet

Pantone Ultra Violet is Color of the Year for 2018

Through­out my design career I’ve gone through T‑squares, pro­por­tion wheels, repro cam­eras, ink­ing pens, light tables & couri­er ser­vices — all of which have been replaced by com­put­ers, pro­grams & the inter­net. But one thing that has been con­stant, & still in the same swatch­book form as fifty years ago, is the invalu­able Pan­tone col­or match­ing sys­tem. Back then it was the only way to guar­an­tee col­or con­sis­ten­cy from draw­ing board to press. Today it serves the same exact pur­pose, in the same exact way, with the addi­tion of exten­sive tools & sys­tems for elec­tron­ic com­mu­ni­ca­tion. Just like the con­sis­ten­cy of col­or from one medi­um to the next, even Pan­tone’s logo & brand iden­ti­ty has remained con­sis­tent & contemporary.

The new mil­len­ni­um, 2000, intro­duced the Pan­tone Col­or of the Year. Since then it has become a high­ly antic­i­pat­ed announce­ment. See past Pan­tone Col­ors of the Year here. Shop Pan­tone books, swatch­es, & gift items here.

A seem­ing­ly nat­ur­al pro­gres­sion from Pan­tone Col­or of the Year 2017, Green­ery 15 – 0343, is Pan­tone Col­or of the Year 2018: Ultra Vio­let 18 – 3838. Green­ery was earthy, where­as Ultra Vio­let is ethereal.

Accord­ing to the spec­tac­u­lar webi­nar pre­sent­ed by Lau­rie Press­man, vice pres­i­dent of Pan­tone Col­or Insti­tute, announc­ing the Pan­tone Col­or of the Year 2018:

“Complex & contemplative, Ultra Violet suggests the mysteries of the cosmos, the intrigue of what lies ahead, & the discoveries beyond where we are now…

“Provocative & thoughtful, Ultra Violet communicates the originality, ingenuity, & visionary thinking that creates a meaningful direction to our future…

“From exploring new technologies & the greater galaxy, to artistic expression & spiritual reflection, intuitive Ultra Violet lights the way for what is yet to come.”

Accord­ing to Ms. Press­man, the Pan­tone Col­or of the Year is cho­sen not on a whim or by any­one’s “favorite col­or.” It is based on pop­u­lar trends among sev­er­al indus­tries — fash­ion, décor, auto­mo­tive, pack­ag­ing, adver­tis­ing & art — and deter­mined through inten­sive ana­lyza­tion & foresight.

Cosmos to Cauliflower

Pantone Ultra Violet 18 – 3838

Inter­est­ing­ly, ultra vio­let light (not the col­or name) can­not be seen by the human eye. Also known as “black light,” it excites the phos­pho­rs in flu­o­res­cent paints & mate­ri­als, caus­ing them to glow in total dark­ness. Many fish & flow­ers have this prop­er­ty. But the light source itself is invisible.

Vis­i­ble or not, Ultra Vio­let is a super cool name for the Pan­tone Col­or of the Year 2018.

You’ll see many fas­ci­nat­ing appli­ca­tions, as well as inspir­ing col­or palettes, for Pan­tone Ultra Vio­let 18 – 3838 at the Pan­tone web­site.

Pan­toneUl­tra Vio­let is pre­sent­ed as the amper­sand & text in Amper­Art #118 Mag­i­cal & Mys­ti­cal. Here are the specs for the Pan­tone 2017 Col­or of the Year:

Pan­tone Ultra Vio­let 18 – 3838
Graph­ics (clos­est match): Pan­tone 2096 C /​ RGB 101 78 163 /​ CMYK 76 75 0 0 /​ HEX 654EA3

The Fash­ion, Home & Inte­ri­ors Cot­ton & Plas­tic for­mu­las are slight­ly dif­fer­ent. See here.

Vis­it Pan​tone​.com for mag­i­cal & mys­ti­cal col­or insights.