Pantone's 2013 Color of the Year

Pantone's 2013 Color of the Year - Emerald

Heading towards the cooler end of the color wheel Pantone has chosen Emerald as it’s pick for 2013.

Not a color to recede or take a back seat in vibrancy, Pantone 17-5641 makes a bold statement like it’s predecessor Tango Tangerine.

Where Tango Tangerine was meant to wake-up and energize, Emerald’s glow sends a more ethereal message of well-being and balance.

Considered a highly fashionable color to use in the 18th century two forms of verdigris, was painted on the walls of two dining rooms in George Washington’s home—Mt. Vernon. Most often seen as a byproduct or “corrosion” seen on copper, verdigris was used in Pompeian frescos, during the Middle Ages in oil paintings, and extensively in the monastic environment as a pigment for illuminated manuscripts and books.

The “new room” (dining room) is the largest,
most public, and most elaborately decor-
ated room at Mount Vernon.

Washington believed the color to be ...‘grateful to the eye’ and less likely than other colors to fade. Verdigris and even prussian blue were valued by the upper classes for the bold statement they made. Since paint was expensive, the most brightly painted rooms were reserved for entertaining and show.

I believe we’ve (wrongly) been conditioned to think only of muted colors for this time period. Having visited Mt. Vernon, I can attest to the shocking intensity of the walls when you first look at them. Washington made a conscious choice to not only paint the “new room” but another smaller dining room and as an accent color in a parlor. A striking visual declaration then that can possibly be channeled now into the present-day enclaves of fashion, industrial and graphic design.

Comments

Purple for the Privileged

Murex Brandaris For centuries, the color purple was both an elusive and exclusive hue. From the time of Ceasar till the conclusion of the Byzantine Empire, purple was worn by kings and those serving in a high office or positions of influence. Rulers like Nero would sentence anyone to death who dared to wear imperial purple. The Roman emperor Diocletain however, took a more economical approach by collecting taxes from anyone who was compelled to slip on the hue. Up until the 1850’s, the arduous process of acquiring this color was more involved then its close cousin—red. Not unlike red, purple was also derived from the animal kingdom. Farmed from the Mediterranean region by the Phonecians as far back as 1500 B.C., Tyrian Purple came from the mucous secretion of a predatory sea snail’s hypobranchial gland ( murex brandaris , murex trunculus , bolinus brandaris ). The sea snails were soaked and then boiled in large vats which allowed the “juice” to be removed from the gland. It t...

Another Pinboard to Follow

Having resisted Pinterest for about a year now, I finally dipped my toes into the virtual pool of pinboards. My apprehension was truly misdirected and I've come to find that the concept of organizing visual images/links onto a virtual board has become a great teaching tool. After covering the typical graphic design topics such as typography, and history it was a natural move to include color among the related topics. So here is a link to my All Color Matters pinboard .

Color

Taking a more fine art approach, Color draws from past, and present art movements for aesthetic examples on basic color theory application. In depth chapters explore topics such as psychological/compositional effects, color relationships, subtractive/additive media, fine art and applied design. Where Color Workbook by Becky Koenig takes a more “hands-on” approach to color theory, Color presents the realities of color uses from a working artist's point-of-view. Other subjects mentioned include computer art, video, architecture, landscape design, sculpture, and clothing. This book does fall short in two areas; cultural influences and the omission of any suggested exercises for students to back-up the text. This normally wouldn't be an issue, however given the high retail price of $93.00, it would be difficult to justify this purchase to the budget minded student unless it can be aquired via used or heavy discount. Color (Sixth Edition) by Paul J. Zelanski, Mary Pat Fishe...

All Color Matters

Search This Blog