Original Nickelodeon USA Press Release:
Nickelodeon and The Pantone Color Institute Launch SpongeBob Yellow and Patrick Star Pink in Commemoration of SpongeBob’s 20th Anniversary
Fans are asked to wear #SpongeBobYellow on Tuesday, June 4, to celebrate the launch
Nickelodeon also collaborated with artists around the world to create unique SpongeBob interpretations in honor of the anniversary
May 30, 2019 04:23 PM Eastern Daylight Time
NEW YORK--Nickelodeon and The Pantone Color Institute have partnered to create official SpongeBob Yellow and Patrick Star Pink colors in commemoration of the 20
th Anniversary of SpongeBob SquarePants, one of the most iconic TV series and characters ever created. Nickelodeon is celebrating 20 years of SpongeBob SquarePants with the “Best Year Ever”—a tribute to the number-one kids’ animated series on TV that has generated a universe of beloved characters, pop culture catchphrases and memes, theatrical releases, consumer products, a Tony award-winning Broadway musical and a global fan base.
“For two decades, SpongeBob SquarePants has inspired millions of people,” said Charlotte Castillo, Senior Vice President, Franchise Planning, Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products. “From our partnership with the Pantone Color Institute to our collaborations with artists around the world – we’re commemorating SpongeBob’s 20th Anniversary by celebrating his optimism, imagination and creativity.”
“We were very honored to partner with Nickelodeon on the creation of colors for these two globally iconic characters. Inspired by SpongeBob’s enthusiasm, playfulness and fun-loving nature, the new SpongeBob Yellow we created is a luminous golden hue that reflects the energy of the sun, radiating joy and happiness, and sparking imagination,” expressed Laurie Pressman, Vice-President-Pantone Color Institute. “Patrick Star Pink, a warm and inviting coral pink is the perfect companion color to SpongeBob Yellow. Spirited and affable, a light hearted pink hue is ideally suited to the fun and laughter of being with your best friend.”
In celebration of the SpongeBob Yellow launch, Nickelodeon is asking fans to show their love of SpongeBob by wearing their #SpongeBobYellow on Tuesday, June 4 and post their looks to @SpongeBob on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Brazilian-born, Miami-based international pop artist Romero Britto reimagined SpongeBob in his trademark vibrant, bold and colorful patterns.
In addition to the Pantone Color Institute partnership, Nickelodeon also collaborated with artists around the world to create unique interpretations of SpongeBob.
Brazilian-born, Miami-based international pop artist Romero Britto reimagined SpongeBob in his trademark vibrant, bold and colorful patterns. Britto creates art to reflect his optimistic view of the world around him, and his iconic style has been described in the media as exuding “warmth, optimism and love”. Britto’s SpongeBob mixed-media art installation will be exhibited at a pop-up SpongeBob experience in Los Angeles later in the year; and Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products (VNCP) is in discussions with partners to translate his original SpongeBob creation to product.
“It is a huge honor for me to create an art piece that celebrates such a beautiful anniversary as the iconic SpongeBob,” said Britto. “He is a character loved by millions of children and families, including my own. My son grew up watching SpongeBob, and so this piece is such a special one that brings me happiness. I feel privileged and thankful to be a part of this partnership that can now be enjoyed by everyone around the world.”
Britto, UK-born artist, Jon Burgerman, known as the purveyor of doodles, created 50 SpongeBob pieces in his unique 'doodle' art style.
In addition to Britto, UK-born artist, Jon Burgerman, known as the purveyor of doodles, created 50 SpongeBob pieces in his unique ‘doodle’ art style.
Burgerman added: “I love the whole world of SpongeBob, from the characters, the settings and most of all the humour (and heart) of the show. Although SpongeBob is a design classic, it’s the characters and their relatable personalities that have kept us entertained over so many years. Stephen Hillenburg created a classic, and it’s an honour to be part of this collaboration.”
In Asia, Secret Fresh--a collective of Filipino artists representing a variety of mediums, including graffiti, comics, film, animation, music, architecture, sculpture, fine art and design-- also collaborated with Nickelodeon on the project. Secret Fresh’s artists used SpongeBob as inspiration for limited-edition art, toys and prints.
Artists include Christian Tamondong and Ronald Ventura alongside 20 other artists whose expressions of SpongeBob ranged from canvas paintings to porcelain and polystone figurines. The pieces will be showcased at an upcoming Secret Fresh gallery exhibition, and VNCP are in discussions with retailers to bring the creations to stores across Asia.
SpongeBob’s 20
th Anniversary also features the Friday, July 12, premiere of “SpongeBob’s Big Birthday Blowout,” an original mixed live-action and animated special, and leads up to the Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies theatrical, “The SpongeBob Movie: It's a Wonderful Sponge,” opening in May 2020.
About The Pantone Color Institute™
The Pantone Color Institute is the business unit within Pantone that highlights top seasonal runway colors, forecasts global color trends, advises companies on color for product and brand visual identity. Through seasonal trend forecasts, color psychology, and consultative color consulting, the Pantone Color Institute partners with global brands to leverage the power, psychology, and emotion of color in their design strategy.
About Pantone
Pantone provides a universal language of color that enables color-critical decisions through every stage of the workflow for brands and manufacturers. More than 10 million designers and producers around the world rely on Pantone products and services to help define, communicate and control color from inspiration to realization – leveraging advanced X-Rite technology to achieve color consistency across various materials and finishes for graphics, fashion and product design. Pantone Standards feature digital and physical color specification and workflow tools. The Pantone Color Institute™ provides customized color standards, brand identity and product color consulting as well as trend forecasting inclusive of Pantone Color of the Year, Fashion Runway Color Trend Reports, color psychology and more. Pantone B2B Licensing incorporates the Pantone Color System into different products and services, enabling licensees to communicate and reproduce approved Pantone values and improve efficiencies for their users. Pantone Lifestyle brings color and design together across apparel, home, and accessories. Connect with Pantone on
Instagram,
Facebook,
Pinterest,
LinkedIn.
About Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products
Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products (VNCP) oversees all merchandising and retail operations for Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ:VIAB, VIA), one of the world’s leading multimedia entertainment companies and home to such powerhouse brands as Nickelodeon, MTV, Paramount Network, Paramount Pictures and Comedy Central. With a diverse portfolio spanning animation, preschool, youth and adult licenses, VNCP is committed to providing key partner development and innovative marketing solutions, ensuring the highest quality product offering across some of the world's most powerful TV and entertainment properties, including SpongeBob SquarePants, PAW Patrol and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
###
Update (6/5) - To celebrate SpongeBob's 20th anniversary,
NYTimes best-selling author, award-winning storyteller, creator, comicbook writer & artist, illustrator, and panel whisperer Francesco Francavilla
recently unveiled APs of the Regular and Variant limited edition screen print posters (of his fave episode "Graveyard Shift") that he designed for Mondo and Nickelodeon! Each print features NOSFERATU Nosferatu and the Hash Slinging Slasher. The show happened at Mondo Gallery 3-4 years ago, where the limited edition prints sold out at the show, so she's releasing now the Artist Proofs from his vault! Each print is available to purchase now at
https://francavilla.bigcartel.com:
From
Kidscreen:
SpongeBob gets artsy for 20th anniversary
Working with artists and design companies like Pantone, Nickelodeon is hoping to breathe fresh life into the 20-year-old IP and inspire unique products in new categories, says SVP of franchise planning Charlotte Castillo.
SpongeBob SquarePants is ready to blow out the birthday candles and unwrap new licensing opportunities. In celebration of the brand’s 20th anniversary, Nickelodeon is partnering with a number of artists to create new interpretations of the famous yellow sponge. All of the new art and interpretations on the well-known brand will then be available for licensing partners to use in the future and are expected to inspire new consumer products to celebrate this anniversary.
One collaboration will see Pantone—the design company best known for its proprietary color matching system—create SpongeBob SquarePants Yellow and Patrick Star Pink. Now those colors will be available for any future licensing partners, to get everything exactly right. It will also be part of the Pantone color library for people who work on fields such as packaging, print, textiles and plastics.
“The partnership with Pantone is a celebration of that super recognizable yellow,” says Charlotte Castillo, SVP of franchise planning for Viacom Nickelodeon consumer products. “We feel a real sense of ownership around that shade, and now with SpongeBob SquarePants Yellow we’re setting a new standard for partners in the future.”
Artists like Jon Burgerman and Romero Britto were encouraged to reinterpret SpongeBob in their own style as part of the year-long celebration. Burgerman is known for his doodles (pictured below) and has created 50 unique SpongeBob pieces in his art style. Britto’s iteration was created in his colorful style (pictured at the top of story). He is also working on a mixed-media piece that will be shown at a SpongeBob 20th anniversary pop-up event later this year (the location and date will be announced at a later time). Secret Fresh, meanwhile, is an artist collective based in the Philippines and has tasked more than 20 artists with creating their own takes on the series, ranging from paintings to porcelain figurines. Viacom Nickelodeon’s consumer products team is in discussions with retailers to bring some of these iterations to stores across Asia.
For all of the artists, licensees and retailers are expected to bring product to shelves starting in Q4, through to spring/summer 2020.
“Something we’ve always leaned into is how many different people relate to SpongeBob, and how they interpret him in unique ways,” Castillo says. “In terms of retail, we’re working with these interpretations in a few different ways, including apparel and collectibles.”
In addition to offering these artists’ interpretations to existing licensing partners to use as inspiration, Nickelodeon will also ink new deals to create consumer products inspired by the artwork. First up, it’s looking at the homewares category and how it can incorporate this new art into prints.
“It’s important to keep giving our licensees fresh, new takes on the characters,” Castillo says. “This is also an opportunity for us to create new partnerships and break into different categories.”
These partnerships come as Nickelodeon continues to celebrate the July 1999 premiere of SpongeBob SquarePants with content and consumer products. Previously announced efforts include a new product line from master toy partner Alpha Group and a dedicated YouTube channel for the brand. The year-long celebration will end in 2020 with the summer premiere of the feature film The SpongeBob Movie: It’s a Wonderful Sponge, from Nickelodeon Movies and Paramount Pictures.
SpongeBob’s birthday comes in a year full of major milestones, including Barbie’s 60th anniversary and Sesame’s 50th birthday, which brands are using as an opportunity to not just slap a birthday banner up but refresh their offerings with new products and new looks.
###
More Nick: Nickelodeon Marks 20 Years of "SpongeBob SquarePants" with the "Best Year Ever"!
Originally published: Thursday, May 30, 2019 at 23:05 BST.
Via Business Wire; Additional sources: Wikipedia.
Follow NickALive! on Twitter, Tumblr, Reddit, via RSS, on Instagram, and/or Facebook for the latest Nickelodeon and SpongeBob SquarePants News and Highlights!
