Pantone’s Colour of the Year for 2019 is Living Coral

December is a month famous for many important events. There are Christmas Day and its festivities, the much-maligned New Year’s Eve and, of course, the Pantone Colour of the Year announcement.

Released this morning by The Pantone Colour Institute – the business unit within the company that forecasts global colour trends – Living Coral was chosen as the colour to rule them all in 2019.

The institute describes the colour as “an animating and life-affirming coral hue with a golden undertone that energises and enlivens with a softer edge”.

In a similar vein to 2017’s colour of the year Greenery, Living Coral was chosen as the annual colour for its connection to nature and the natural world.

“Living Coral embraces us with warmth and nourishment to provide comfort and buoyancy in our continually shifting environment.

“In reaction to the onslaught of digital technology and social media increasingly embedding into daily life, we are seeking authentic and immersive experiences that enable connection and intimacy,” according to the Pantone website.

But if you thought this colour was all about warmth and social connection, you’d be missing the very topical subtext in Pantone’s announcement.

The short video created to announce the colour of 2019 features a fish and part of a coral reef. Not just a play on the name, this connection to marine environments, and more locally the Great Barrier Reef, highlights the importance of climate change action and the need to respect our natural surroundings.

“We get energy from nature,” a statement from Pantone reads. “Just as coral reefs are a source of sustenance and shelter to sea life, vibrant yet mellow Living Coral embraces us with warmth and nourishment to provide comfort and buoyancy in our continually shifting environment.”

For the past 20 years, Pantone’s colour of the year selection has been the result of careful consideration and trend analysis from a variety of sources, including fashion, art and socio-economic conditions.

With a renewed pressure on world leaders to act on climate change, and even school children taking to the streets to protest against the Australian government’s inaction, the Colour of the Year announcement couldn’t be better timed.