From a playful furniture collection to a collapsible dress, we’ve rounded up 10 of the best purple projects from Dezeen’s archive that are reminiscent of Pantone’s newest color of the year.
Last week, the color company named Pantone Very Peri the color of the year 2022. The color consists of a combination of purple-red undertones and blue tones and is somewhere in the purple spectrum. However, the paint company describes it as “Always Blue”.
Purple is historically associated with royalty and creativity, and its use in architecture and design often reflects those connotations.
“Color is still routinely associated with royalty, extravagance, wealth and power,” wrote Michelle Ogundehin in an opinion piece for Dezeen.
“It was the color of the elite. A mark of vanity, greed and pride,” she added.
Read on for a selection of projects that will make the most of this versatile color:
Ultima Thule by Stiliyana Minkovska
London-based architect Stiliyana Minkovska has designed three curved birthing chairs, collectively called Ultima Thule, which provide additional support for women during childbirth.
Each of the ergonomic chairs are available in a light purple shade and are designed to help women position themselves for a more comfortable birth.
Learn more about Ultima Thule ›
In between from Sun Woo
South Korean fashion designer Sun Woo Chang’s In Between collection aims to provide wearers with a “portable home” that can be easily folded.
Among other things in the 13-piece collection is this two-tone, floor-length dress, which is purple on the front and purple on the back. Rings made of steel wire and PVC tubing were used around the dress, much like a pop-up tent.
Learn more about in between ›
Mathematics: The Winton Gallery in the Science Museum by Zaha Hadid Architects
Huge translucent curls form a canopy over this gallery space in London’s Science Museum designed by Zaha Hadid Architects.
The math gallery was modeled after a wind tunnel for an airplane from the 1920s, and the studio covered it with purple light to bring items from the museum’s science, technology, engineering, and math collections to life.
Learn more about math: The Winton Gallery ›
Cross Border Xpress (CBX) from Legorreta
Instead of building a wall along the Mexican border with the United States, as former US President Donald Trump wanted, the Mexican company Legorreta built a terminal and a bridge that make crossings faster.
The 14,788 square foot (1,374 square meter) walkway connects the existing Tijuana International Airport in Mexico with an airport terminal in San Diego. It’s clad in a bold purple panel that sets it apart from the everyday surroundings of the city’s airport.
Learn more about CBX ›
Bring London Together by Yinka Ilori
London-based designer Yinka Ilori has temporarily redesigned 18 pedestrian crossings in central London with his characteristic colorful circles and lines.
Ilori swapped the traditional black and white stripes for candy-colored blue, orange, pink, green and purple tones.
Learn more about Bring London Together ›
Opera by Dead Lotus Couture
The London fashion label Dead Lotus Couture has created a collection of 12 women’s fashion items in vintage style made from natural latex and faux fur.
In the collection is this shiny purple two-piece with flared pants reminiscent of the 1970s and oversized buttons that wouldn’t look out of place on a character from a Wes Anderson movie.
Learn more about Operio ›
The sound wave from Penda
Visitors to a park in Xiangyang are greeted with over 500 pale purple steel fins equipped with LED lights and internal speakers that play traditional Chinese songs.
The installation is located in the Myrtle Tree Garden, a two square mile park inhabited by a collection of 1,000 year old myrtle trees with bright purple foliage.
The Beijing architecture firm Penda wanted the rows of metallic-purple columns to look like a miniature metropolis.
Learn more about The Soundwave ›
Furniture collection from Crosby Studios
The Russian design company Crosby Studios has made no secret of its love for the color purple. It used the color for a dining table that doubles as a carousel, as well as in the founder’s own apartment in New York.
Featured at NYCxDesign Festival 2018, this furniture and accessories collection features designs in a variety of shades of purple.
Learn more about the furniture collection ›
Centro Verso by Tom Blachford
Purple and blue images of Melbourne’s night skyline form the images in the experimental series by photographer Tom Blachford.
The photographer used extended exposure times and lens rotation to create images reminiscent of the ethereal building holograms featured in Ridley Scott’s 1982 science fiction film Blade Runner.
Find out more about Centro Verso ›
Random International rain room
Following the sudden death of beloved musician Prince in 2016, the Rain Room of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art was transformed into a tribute to the artist’s famous track Purple Rain. Visitors could play in the purple rain installation without getting wet.
After the song was released, the color became synonymous with the artist, and many works that were created after his death were based on the hue.
Learn more about rain space ›
