VIVA MAGENTA, The Color of The Year 2023

BULETIN TEKSTIL.COM/Jakarta – Every year, Pantone Color Institute, an American company which specializes itself on world color standardization, selects one, or sometimes two, color(s) in which they call “The Color of the Year”. The color they selected is considered as a representation of the particular year. For the year 2023, Viva-Magenta 18-1750 is Pantone’s chosen color.

Quoted from Pantone’s website, Viva Magenta color is described as “An unconventional shade for an unconventional time”. We are all aware that these past few years there have been many occurrences that caused global uncertainties, namely the covid-19 pandemic, Russian and Ukrainian war, insufficient world food and energy supplies, weakening of global economies which caused high inflation, and so on. In these uncertain times, also added forecasts from economic experts that the year 2023 will be a difficult year for most, a lot of people need ways to alleviate their burdens. A bright color is considered to help lighten the mental burdens. “Viva Magenta is a shade rooted in nature descending from the red family and expressive of a new signal of strength. Viva Magenta is brave and fearless, a pulsating color whose exuberance promotes a joyous and optimistic celebration”.

Pantone Viva Magenta color illustration

Considering the recent global occurrences mentioned above, people are now attempting to balance their lives. The pandemic has forced people to utilize digital devices in almost all aspects of life. People then realize that these uncertainties are nonetheless the results of their own actions that only paid little attention to the environment. As a result, many people now desire to balance their physical and digital lives by increasing their awareness and appreciation of nature. Likewise in today’s design world which incorporates many natural elements, both in terms of colors, materials, and motifs.  Color of the Year 2023 acknowledges and captures various matters that lead to the gravitational trends of utilizing colors that are derived from nature along with the development of movements surrounding climate change, sustainability, and land protection.

The Viva Magenta color inspiration was taken from organic dye elements sourced from cochineal beetles. For thousands of years, the Aztecs and Mayans people from North and Central Americas have been using cochineal beetles to dye their textiles. The color produced from cochineals is a very deep and strong red, known as carmine red. Carmine red is considered as the most precious, strongest, and brightest of the natural dye family. The deep red from cochineals absorbs very well to animal fibers compared to plant fibers.

The cochineal insect, the color inspiration for Viva Magenta

The color of red is the color of strength that celebrates life. Viva Magenta radiates the brightness of red which balances boldness and the feeling of fun. “This dynamic mix exudes rebellion, but not at the expense of softness. Therefore, this color embodies an expression of fierce grace, inspiring us to show up with confidence and humanity.”

The application of Viva Magenta can be varied depending on your own needs. To show powerfulness, this color can be applied fully as the main color. Should you prefer to be in the safer and neutral side, Viva Magenta can be used as an accent or accessory, possible also to be mixed with other colors suggested by Pantone such as grays, blues, or pastels. It can also be used as monochromatic colors, paired with reds/pinks as variations. Magenta, or in Indonesian language known as patma, is a result between the mix of red and blue colors that produces a purplish red hue. Because Viva Magenta is a red that strikes balance between warm and cool, it’s not too harsh for the body. Instead, it brings a fun, celebratory element and can be utilized for all ages, genders, and skin tones.

An application illustration for using the Viva Magenta color from Pantone

Every year since 2000, Pantone Color Institute, a color consulting division from Pantone LLC with its headquarter in New Jersey, United States, released colors which they name “Color of the Year”. The selected Color of the Year is considered as a color guide that is applied by many companies in the world, especially companies in the design fields, to make their design creations. Usually, Pantone releases Color of the Year at the beginning of December of the previous year. Such as the announcement of Viva Magenta as the Color of the Year 2023 at the beginning of December 2022, so that design companies can start producing their designs using that color for the next one or two years. Color of the Year guide is selected based on the current zeitgeist, that is the spirit of a current period, triggered by today’s global occurrences.

(Red B-Teks/Shinta Djiwatampu)

Fashion Design Program Director

LaSalle College Jakarta

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