It’s not quite red, and not quite purple. Pantone’s 2023 colour of the year has been unveiled as Viva Magenta, a shade with roots in nature but primed for the digital age.
Laurie Pressman, Vice President of the Pantone Color Institute, described it as an “unconventional shade for an unconventional time”, taking note of the cataclysmic lifestyle shift brought on by the pandemic.
“The biggest overriding factor in shaping the time has been our experience with COVID in forcing us to make changes that willingly or not have transformed our lifestyles,” he said.
On Instagram, Pantone described Viva Magenta as a “nuanced crimson red tone that presents a balance between warm and cool” and one that “comfortably straddles the physical and virtual, evocative of our multi-dimensional world”.
“Assertive but not aggressive, it is a carmine red that does not boldly dominate but instead takes a ‘fist in a velvet glove’ approach,” Pantone said. “Exuding dynamism, PANTONE 18-1750 Viva Magenta is a transformative red tone capable of driving design to create a more positive future.”
Pantone selects its colour of the year by diving into the worlds of fashion, film, television, art, travel and design, searching for new colour influences. The expert team also looks at things like new lifestyles, socio-economic conditions, materials, textures, and new technologies — which explains Viva Magenta’s straddling of the digital world and the real one.
The colour selection is also Pantone’s way of predicting the year to come. Last year’s colour, a newly created shade of lilac called Very Peri, was about 2022 being a year of expansive possibilities (we’ll let you be the judges of whether that rung true for you these past 12 months). Viva Magenta is about a healing of divides.
“We’re living in a time where so many people have been aggressive; that’s what’s needed to go forward,” Pressman continued. “We need courage, bravery, but we’re looking for something that promotes joy and is fun. Life right now is unconventional and challenging in many ways – I think we’re looking for things that help us escape.”
So where have we seen Viva Magenta before, and where can you buy it?
Splashes of the purplish hue have been popping up for quite some time — although, to be fair, we’ve all been a bit distracted by it’s louder cousin, Valentino pink. Splashes of magenta have been popping up everywhere from Dior Men’s resort 2023 presentation, Gucci’s fall 2022 ready-to-wear collection, and Louwe’s headline-making fall 2022 show.
Last month, the new Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, stepped out in a magenta dress from designer Emilia Wickstead when welcoming South African president Cyril Ramaphosa to the United Kingdom.
Conscious skate shoe brand Cariuma, the ongoing official footware partner for Pantone, has unveiled six styles with the Viva Magenta colour, including their viral OCA style shoe (complete with a wait list 77,000-people strong — add your name here).
And no doubt other brands will be releasing products soon, but for now, we’ve collated a few pieces already available to shop.
Gucci double-breasted gauze blazer, $4,450, from Net-A-Porter
Manning Cartell Limitless Halter Knit Dress, $399, from The Iconic
Gretta Organza Mini Dress, $455, from Aje
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