Pondering Pantone’s Color(s) of the Year

To capture the world’s mood in color for 2021, Pantone chose two this year: Illuminating Yellow and Ultimate Grey. The lemony, cheerful yellow is meant to help fortify us with needed energy and optimism, the company says – while the Ultimate Grey was chosen to encourage “feelings of composure, steadiness and resilience”. We were able to find multiple examples of both colors in our design library, our project photo archive, and throughout our office here at Iconica.

The saturated colors of the floor and wall tiles, the playful fabrics and wallcoverings and the rich textures of the carpeting all come together in these vignettes, conjuring thoughts of hope and renewal in the coming new year! Who couldn’t use a little positivity right now?

Pantone created the Pantone Matching System (PMS) to aid in standardizing color reproduction across a variety of methods and materials without having to hold samples side by side. Colors have specific formulas based on 13 base pigments plus black. Since 2000, the Pantone Color Institute has selected a “Color of the Year” highlighting one unique location on the color spectrum, often tying it to a commonality among humans. This year, 2021, is the first time two colors were selected.