MARCH 23 • 2023 | 59

P

antone’s Color of the Year, Viva 
Magenta 18-1750, vibrates with vim 
and vigor. It 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, and a pulsating 
color whose exuberance promotes a joyous 
and optimistic celebration, writing a new 
narrative.
This year’s Color of the Year is powerful 
and empowering. It is a new animated 
red that revels in pure joy, encouraging 
experimentation and self-expression without 
restraint, an electrifying, and a boundaryless 
shade that is manifesting as a stand-out 
statement. PANTONE 18-1750 Viva Magenta 
welcomes anyone and everyone with the 
same verve for life and rebellious spirit. It is a color 
that is audacious, full of wit and inclusive of all.
“Three years deep into a pandemic, facing a war, 
an unstable economy, social unrest, supply chain 
breakdowns, and mounting climate change, we 
need to heal,
” Pantone adds. “
And still, we need 
to find the motivation to continue. Here, Viva 
Magenta cloaks us in both power and grace, and 
sends us out into the world with the verve we’ve 
yearned for.
”
In this age of technology, we look to draw 
inspiration from nature and what is real. 
PANTONE 18-1750 Viva Magenta descends 
from the red family, and is inspired by the red of 
cochineal, one of the most precious dyes belonging 
to the natural dye family as well as one of the 
strongest and brightest the world has known.
This year, experts observed a “heightened 
appreciation and awareness of nature”: People 
are bringing more plants and florals into their 
homes, finding newfound enjoyment in outdoor 
recreation and travel after the pandemic-induced 
pause and looking to nurturing, “life-giving 
ingredients” as a result of the public health crisis.
Rooted in the primordial, Viva Magenta 

reconnects us to original matter. Invoking the 
forces of nature, it galvanizes our spirit, helping us 
to build our inner strength.
“The Color of the Year 2023 merges the 
richness, warmth, and strength of natural 
matters with the rich, open horizons of 
the digital world,
” Pantone says. “The 
result is a shade of red that expands 
our horizons of authenticity.
”
Other words the company uses 
to characterize the color — and, 
by extension, the current cultural 
moment — include powerful, 
empowering, electrifying, 
boundaryless, audacious and 
inclusive.
“It is assertive, but not aggressive, 
a carmine red that does not boldly 
dominate but instead takes a ‘fist in a 
velvet glove’ approach,
” it says. “Exuding 
dynamism, PANTONE 18-1750 Viva Magenta is a 
transformative red tone capable of driving design 
to create a more positive future.
” 

Source. Pantone.com