As we’re in the home stretch to the end of the year, the tra­di­tional “Best of” lists and year overviews are start­ing to pop up. Since 2000 Pan­tone elects a Colour of the Year. Last week “the global author­ity on color and provider of pro­fes­sional color stan­dards for the design indus­tries”, announced PAN­TONE^® 14-0848 Mimosa, a “warm, engag­ing yellow which embod­ies hope­ful­ness and reas­sur­ance in a cli­mate of change”, as the colour of the year for 2009. “In a time of eco­nomic uncer­tainty and polit­i­cal change, opti­mism is para­mount and no other color expresses hope and reas­sur­ance more than yellow.” It suc­ceeds last year’s PAN­TONE^® 18-3943 Blue Iris, “a mul­ti­fac­eted hue reflect­ing the com­plex­ity of the world that sur­rounds us”.

Leatrice Eise­man, exec­u­tive direc­tor of the Pan­tone Color Insti­tute^®, explains:

The color yellow exem­pli­fies the warmth and nur­tur­ing qual­ity of the sun, prop­er­ties we as humans are nat­u­rally drawn to for reas­sur­ance. Mimosa also speaks to enlight­en­ment, as it is a hue that sparks imag­i­na­tion and innovation.

Best illus­trated by the abun­dant flow­ers of the Mimosa tree and the sparkle of the bril­liantly hued cock­tail, the 2009 color of the year rep­re­sents the hope­ful and radi­ant char­ac­ter­is­tics asso­ci­ated with the color yellow. Mimosa is a ver­sa­tile shade that coor­di­nates with any other color, has appeal for men and women, and trans­lates to both fash­ion and inte­ri­ors. Look for women’s acces­sories, home fur­nish­ings, active sports­wear and men’s ties and shirts in this vibrant hue.

The elec­tion of Mimosa yellow as Colour of the Year caught Erik Spiek­er­mann’s atten­tion. On his Spiekerblog he rem­i­nisces about the very early days of FontShop 20 years ago, when Alex Branczyk and him­self designed the logo and graphic iden­tity for the fledgeling company:

We thought light and dark would nicely rep­re­sent the dig­i­tal process of one and zero, as well as the process inside the laser printer. Black and white was too plain, so it became black and yellow. That colour scheme has become syn­ony­mous with FontShop and its prod­ucts, like the Font­Font library.

FontShop and The Font­Feed, whose graphic iden­ti­ties promi­nently fea­ture yellow with black and white ele­ments, are of course delighted with this selec­tion. You can rely on us for more than type exper­tise. We’ll “nur­ture and reas­sure” you too. ;)

Past Colours of the Year

• 2000 | PAN­TONE^® 15-4020 Cerulean Blue
  Chosen for the mil­len­nium for its calm­ing zen state of mind.
• 2001 | PAN­TONE^® 17-2031 Fuch­sia Rose
  A rever­sal from the pre­vi­ous year, more excit­ing, more fem­i­nine and sexy.
• 2002 | PAN­TONE^® 19-1664 True Red
  Rec­og­nizes the impact of 9/11 with a patri­otic hue.
• 2003 | PAN­TONE^® 14-4811 Aqua Sky
  A cool blue meant to restore hope and serenity.
• 2004 | PAN­TONE^® 17-1456 Tiger Lily
  Acknowl­edges the hip­ness of orange, with a touch of exoticism.
• 2005 | PAN­TONE^® 15-5217 Blue Turquoise
  Another rever­sal to a calm­ing shade.
• 2006 | PAN­TONE^® 13-1106 Sand Dollar
  A neu­tral color that expresses con­cern about the economy.
• 2007 | PAN­TONE^® 19-1557 Chili Pepper
  Chosen for its pizazz and sophis­ti­ca­tion and its hint of ethnic taste.
• 2008 | PAN­TONE^® 18-3943 Blue Iris
  A mix of blue and purple that sug­gests depend­abil­ity and magic.

Header image: Mimosa stock photo © Josep Altarriba