Meeting Chroma the Great: Pantone, From Chemistry to Fashion and Back

Exclusively for Saturated Space, Margaret McCormick writes about that ever- fashionable, and seemingly ubiquitous colour-matching corporation, Pantone.

"From its humble beginnings in 1963, Pantone made itself essential to manufacturing on a global scale via the creation of the Pantone Matching System (PMS) ® which revolutionized colour reproduction and selection. Though in the wake of the digital age, the company has sought a new image to stay relevant. Now describing itself as the “authority” on colour, Pantone has cornered the market on what makes a colour cool, hip and fashionable. But how does “cool” happen? What makes Pantone the authority and how does this change in branding affect a greater discourse of design?

The answer is one of perception and precedent, marketing and manufacturing, chemistry and charisma."

Please either use the embedded reader below or click HERE to read the text.