Pantone has named PANTONE 18-3838 Ultra Violet its Colour of the Year for 2018, drawing on the 'mysteries of the cosmos' and the 'vast and limitless night sky' for inspiration.
The deep blue-purple is in contrast to 2017's Colour of the Year, 15-0343 Greenery, which heavily evoked the natural world for a sense of growth and renewal. Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Colour Institute, said Ultra Violet symbolised experimentation, ingenuity, and non-conformity. "We are living in a time that requires inventiveness and imagination. It is this kind of creative inspiration that is indigenous to PANTONE 18-3838 Ultra Violet, a blue-based purple that takes our awareness and potential to a higher level.
"From exploring new technologies and the greater galaxy, to artistic expression and spiritual reflection, intuitive Ultra Violet lights the way to what is to come," she said.
The announcement for Ultra Violet cited musicians Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie and Prince as bringing similar purples to the forefront of Western pop culture, and noted that purple often also has spiritual or mystical connotations. The colour is often associated with mindfulness practices, which offer a higher ground to those seeking refuge from today’s over-stimulated world. The use of purple-toned lighting in meditation spaces and other gathering places energizes the communities that gather there and inspire connection, the press release read.
The closest match for Ultra Violet in Pantone’s PLUS Series is 2096C, which can be achieved in CMYK with C=76 M=75 Y=0 K=0; in RGB with sR=101 sG=78 sB=163; and in HTML (as seen here) with 654EA3.
Previous Colours of the Year include:
- PANTONE 15-0343 Greenery (2017)
- PANTONE 15-3919 Serenity and PANTONE 13-1520 Rose Quartz (2016)
- PANTONE 18-1438 Marsala (2015)
- PANTONE 18-3224 Radiant Orchid (2014)
- PANTONE 17-5641 Emerald (2013)
- PANTONE 17-1463 Tangerine Tango (2012)
- PANTONE 18-2120 Honeysuckle (2011)
- PANTONE 15-5519 Turquoise (2010)
- PANTONE 14-0848 Mimosa (2009)
- PANTONE 18-3943 Blue Iris (2008)
- PANTONE 19-1557 Chili Pepper (2007)
- PANTONE 13-1106 Sand Dollar (2006)
- PANTONE 15-5217 Blue Turquoise (2005)
- PANTONE 17-1456 Tigerlily (2004)
- PANTONE 14-4811 Aqua Sky (2003)
- PANTONE 19-1664 True Red (2002)
- PANTONE 17-2031 Fuchsia Rose (2001)
- PANTONE 15-4020 Cerulean (2000)
The most recent purple to be named Colour of the Year was PANTONE 18-3224 Radiant Orchid in 2014, which also followed a green: 2013's PANTONE 17-5641 Emerald.