This is the color of the year, according to Pantone, for 2022

(CNN) – As many of us spend the final days of 2021 reflecting on the events that unfolded, the world’s color authority Pantone is busy looking ahead to decide the shade that will best encapsulate 2022.

Wednesday presented Very Peri, a violet hue that, according to the company, combines the constant tranquility of blue with an energetic infusion of red. It is the first time the company has manufactured a color rather than reverting to its pre-existing archive, a decision that was a vital element in this year’s selection process.

“It was really important for us to create a new color, because now we have a very new view of the world,” Pantone Color Institute executive director Leatrice Eiseman said in a video call.

“It is literally the most cheerful and warmest of all the blue tones,” he added when describing the tone. “Because of that red undertone, it introduces an empowering feeling of novelty, and novelty is what we’re looking for.”

The pandemic has had a strong impact on the way we normally live and work, posing obstacles that have forced people to think differently.

“We’ve been through so many challenges during this time that we don’t know what’s going to emerge overnight,” said Pantone Vice President Laurie Pressman, who was also on the call. “It is curiosity that is helping people get through these difficult times. What we would call courageous creativity.”

“Color symbolizes the future,” adds Eiseman. “[Tiene] That lively, cheerful attitude we talked about, that carefree confidence and creative spirit. “

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Every year, Pantone tries to interpret the spirit of the time through color theory, looking for clues in fashion, design and interior design.

And it’s no wonder she makes unconventional choices: In 2016, the company chose a two-tone gradient, Rose Quartz and Serenity, to reflect a year defined by changes in gender policy. In 2020, not one, but two colors, Ultimate Gray and Illuminating (a vibrant yellow), were selected to capture both the resilience and optimism displayed during the first year of the pandemic.

The annual task of forecasting the color that will best reflect the year ahead has been an effort of more than 20 years, which began as a desire to cultivate conversations around the power of color, Eiseman says.

“We first made the color of the year so that people would talk about the role of color,” he said. “And once we get them to talk about it, it creates a buzz and it hits the spot: color is such an integral part of our everyday lives, but we take it for granted.”

The Color Authority has partnered with Microsoft and is implementing color in various applications. Credit: Courtesy of Pantone Color Institute

In 2021, the company was inspired by a new vertical: technology. From the NFTs (tokens non-expendable) and the space shuttle rides to Mark Zuckerberg’s promise of the metaverse, the year was marked by our increasing reliance on automation and the digital realm. It’s a relationship that, in part, prompted Pantone’s decision to work with Microsoft, among other partners, on its Color of the Year launch.

Very peri, for example, will be integrated into a number of Microsoft applications in the form of digital screensavers and interface options for PowerPoint, Teams, Edge and Windows.

Pantone images are also new: this year the new tone is presented through a piece of digital art, in addition to the traditional sample, which consolidates the connection of color with the world of technology.

Whether the Very Peri, By 2022, he is greeted with open arms as if not, Pressman and Eiseman are content to spark the conversation.

“It amazes me to hear about the color of the year from people who are not related to color in any way,” Eiseman said.

“We have seen it grow progressively over the years. And we are a little in awe of it, but delighted,” she continued. “Because that is our purpose.”