These are Pantone's "uplifting" 2021 Colors of the Year

Pantone, the global color authority, has announced not one but two selections for its newest Color(s) of the Year.

This year’s message is about “a color combination that gives us resilience and hope” and the two colors selected for 2021 are Ultimate Gray and Illuminating.

Pantone 17-5104 Ultimate Gray.

Pantone 13-0647 Illuminating

The institution describes Ultimate Gray and Illuminating as “two independent colors that come together to create an aspirational color pairing, conjoining deeper feelings of thoughtfulness with the optimistic promise of a sunshine-filled day.”

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Illuminating is a “bright and cheerful” shade of yellow, while Ultimate Gray is “emblematic of solid and dependable elements.”

Color swatches and items with Pantone’s 2021 Colors of the year.

Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of Pantone’s Color Institute, explains that selecting two different colors displays how “different elements come together to express a message of strength and hopefulness.”

(Pantone)

“It’s not about one color or person, it’s about more than one,” Eiseman says in a release. “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.”

Pantone’s 2021 Colors of the Year (Pantone).

“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,” Laurie Pressman, Vice President of the Pantone Color Institute adds.

“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.”

(Pantone)

For the past two decades, Pantone’s Color of the Year has been a driving force in influencing product development as well as many facets of the fashion, interior design, and industrial design industry.

Experts at the Pantone Color Institute reach out to the entertainment industry, the design industry, and all areas of the world to determine a winning shade.

Last year’s Color of the Year was Classic Blue — a thought-provoking and timeless hue.