How Pantone Became the Global Authority on Color

December 21, 2023, 02:41:09 AM

How Pantone Became the Global Authority on Color

[html]Pantone has declared “Peach Fuzz” the Color of the Year. This selection, however, raises the question: How did Pantone beco*e the global authority on color? Above, the Wall Street Journal describes how Pantone began as a co*mercial printing co*pany during the 1950s. Then, in the early 60s, it evolved into something quite different. Recognizing that […]

Pantone has declared “Peach Fuzz” the Color of the Year. This selection, however, raises the question: How did Pantone beco*e the global authority on color? Above, the Wall Street Journal describes how Pantone began as a co*mercial printing co*pany during the 1950s. Then, in the early 60s, it evolved into something quite different. Recognizing that its clients (and other co*panies) need to print materials with consistent colors, Pantone created a universal color language, the Pantone Matching System (PMS), where each color is assigned a specific number. For instance, “Peach Fuzz” corresponds to #FFBE98. As Slate points out, this system ensured that “printers and clients would have a shared reference when they talk to one another—an industry standard, so that a color would mean the same thing all the way from a designer’s vision to the printed item.” Over the next 60 years, Pantone continued to nurture the Pantone Matching System, undoubtedly generating significant revenue along the way and, more importantly, making itself the arbiter of color worldwide.

If you would like to sign up for Open Culture’s free email newsletter, please find it here. Or follow our posts on Threads, Facebook, BlueSky or Mastodon.

If you would like to support the mission of Open Culture, consider making a donation to our site. It’s hard to rely 100% on ads, and your contributions will help us continue providing the best free cultural and educational materials to learners everywhere. You can contribute through PayPal, Patreon, and Venmo (@openculture). Thanks!

Prince Gets an Official Purple Pantone Color

The Woman Who Theorized Color: An Introduction to Mary Gartside’s New Theory of Colours (1808)

The Vibrant Color Wheels Designed by Goethe, Newton & Other Theorists of Color (1665–1810)

[/html]

Source: How Pantone Became the Global Authority on Color (http://ht**://www.openculture.c**/2023/12/how-pantone-became-the-global-authority-on-color.html)