If you could sum up the year, 2017, in one word—no, one color—what would it be? For Pantone, it’s swatch 18-3838, otherwise known as “Ultra Violet.” According to the announcement of this year’s Color of the Year, Pantone wrote, “Inventive and imaginative, Ultra Violet lights the way to what is yet to come.”
The blue-based purple color is meant to communicate traits like originality and ingenuity, while also offering a nod to artistic expression, spiritual reflection, and the potential for exploring new mysteries.
In a statement, Pantone Color Institute Vice President Laurie Pressman said, “The Pantone Color of the Year has come to mean so much more than ‘what’s trending’ in the world of design; it’s truly a reflection of what’s needed in our world today.”
With this color, one is supposed to think of non-conformity as well as musical icons like Prince, David Bowie, and Jimi Hendrix. USA Today also reports that the color has had other roles in history, being used in logos by the women's suffrage movement of the early 1900s in Britain.
Co.Design praised the choice, writing, “It’s hard not to see the concrete connections between today’s social movements and ’60s counterculture and feminism, which Pantone did reference in its pick.”
In 2016, the Color of the Year was swatch 15-0343, dubbed “Greenery.” When Pantone announced last year’s color, they wrote, “Greenery bursts forth in 2017 to provide us with the hope we collectively yearn for amid a complex social and political landscape ... Greenery symbolizes the reconnection we seek with nature, one another, and a larger purpose."
For a brief look at how “Ultra Violet” might play out in the District, Curbed DC has collected a few photos of purple homes, shared on Instagram. Know of other homes worth featuring? Let Curbed DC know in the comments.
• Color of the Year [Pantone]
• 5 D.C. area rooms to find Pantone's color of the year [Curbed DC]
• Pantone picks deep purple 'Ultra Violet' as color of year [USA Today]