PANTONE Color of the Year Conspiracy!

Hello, everyone. Welcome back to Buy Amara. This is a somewhat weekly news show [laughter] where we'll discuss some of the weird, strange, and downright odd things that have happened in the art and history fields.

I'm your host and personal curator, Amara Andrew. This week, we're talking about the smallest Rembrandt paintings emerged from a private collection, that is a tongue twister, a famous George Washington portrait for sale, Pantone color of the year conspiracy, and a politician who destroyed a Church of Satan holiday exhibit.

And I have a lot of thoughts about all of this, basically. So, let's just get straight into it. I feel like my voice actually sounds like I'm like sleepy.

It is still the morning, so I guess that is Oh, I'll just turn that off. Anyway, hi. It has been a hot fucking minute.

So much has happened, so I want to start the show with updates. I feel very rusty right now, I'm just realizing.! I did not have enough caffeine this morning.

So, this is the part of the show called updates, where I just tell you things in my life, and if you don't give a fuck, then you can zoom right ahead to all the stories because they are a little wild. A couple of them are pretty wild. But anyway, hi.

It has been a very long time, I'm so sorry. Things have just been crazy busy, it's been really good, though. We've been traveling a lot for our My business is called MAVEN, so it's social media videography to show that you're an expert, but then also, like, show your personality and everything.

We primarily work with realtors. So anyway, we've been traveling, we've been on the road. We're like a band or a comedian.

But we've been traveling for that. So we call, like our people who are part of this, like, our top bananas, which is really fun, because we had top banana and big cheese, but we got rid of big cheese, so now it's just top banana. But anyway, we went to West Chester, Pennsylvania, and that was really fun.

I really love West Chester. Mostly because I was a very big Bam Margera fan growing up. Who wasn't?

Well, some people. But I really loved Jackass, also, so it was just like, "Ooh, this is fun to be here." and West Chester's like a super cute little town. I'd never been there even though my dad is like from that area, so I just, like, never made it that way.

But that was really fun. We got to record with, one of our friends, and yeah, it was just like a really nice time. We got to, like, see other people, too, while we were there, so I don't know.

I really liked it, and I really like being able to, like, travel and hang out with people and stuff like that. Especially because, like, editing is very solitary, [laughter] so you don't really get to, like, hang out and, like, talk to a bunch of different people. So I don't know.

That was really fun, and I really liked it. Right after that, we went to Maumee, Ohio, and then we recorded with another top banana, and she was also just so lovely. I don't know.

I'm just, like, I'm very thankful for what I get to do for work, because, or for work, but what I get to do is just literally hang out with people, have fun, get to connect with people. That is I think the connection is the most important thing for me just because I really like being able to, like, connect with people and actually, like, make friends, like, actual friends, too.

So I don't know. That was just really fun, and she was very sweet. She had this crazy listing because, like, I said we work with a lot of realtors.

It's like a multi-million dollar home. It looked like a fucking castle. It was like I think one of the legitimately craziest houses I've ever seen.

There was a huge, oh, I should actually tell you about this if you're into art. [laughter] Why not? Because you're here. There's this huge, like, panoramic painting that surrounded the entire like, you go up this really grand, beautiful walnut, I think walnut, wood staircase and then there's this huge fucking panoramic painting at the top and it this guy was like wet for American Revolution history.

Like, he just had colonial shit everywhere. I think there was like a copy of it wasn't an actual copy, of one of the Oh, my god. Bill of Rights, I think, and then anyway, so this painting, I'm pretty sure it was a Singleton Copley, but I'm not 100% sure.

I've definitely seen it before, but I cannot place who the fuck it was. But anyway, huge fucking painting and it they also had like a king herald I don't know why I'm telling you about all this, but it was one of the weirdest houses I've ever seen, but also really cool. So anyway, that was that.

We've been traveling a lot for work and then in January, we're gone like the entire month. We have so many more people that we're filming with, which I'm really excited about. We have a baby shower coming up, too, which I don't think I've ever been to a baby shower, or maybe one, I don't know.

It's, babies are not my thing, so, [laughter] but I'm very excited because, the couple, they've been trying to like have a kid like for a bit and like everything's gone successfully, so I'm very excited for them, I can't wait. What else has happened? I need to look at all my notes.

Sorry, I'm like frazzled right now, I guess. [throat clearing] Sorry. [laughter] Oh, you can tell, we have a new table, shocking. I guess you can kind of see it, but it is white and it reflects light now, which is very lovely. So, we're just, like, the other table was, like, awkwardly too high for sitting at, so I always had to, like, sit on, like, a blanket or a pillow or something, spoiler alert, or not spoiler alert, insider info. [laughter] I almost said insider trading, whatever. [laughter] so now we have, like, an actually correct sized table and I really like it, actually.

It's nice. [sighs] [tapping sound] ASMR. [laughter] You probably can't even hear that. Anyway, so, new table. Oh, I also got a new car, fun fact.

So, for the longest time, I've been driving a 2002 gold Chevy Cavalier with a massive fucking dent in the side because somebody hit me when I was at work one day. [laughter] and that was totally fine because it's a piece of shit car, so I really didn't care. As long as it could still work, that was fine with me. So, I really wanted to get a Toyota Supra, just because I was like, "Ooh, that looks really fun," or like a GR86 or even like a Mustang.

I don't know, I really wanted like a fast, like, sports car. I'm not really a an SUV person, personally. If you are, that is totally fine, whatever.

But I just wanted something fast and cute and cute, [laughter] and sporty. Oh, also I was looking at the Mazda Miatas, but I literally could not fit a single fucking thing in that trunk. Like, I run a videography business.

If I need to go to somebody, I couldn't even fit like my lighting equipment in there, and we have a very minimalist set up. It's literally just a backpack and a camera bag. I could not fucking fit it in that trunk. [laughter] So, I was just like, "Okay, I don't think this is going to work out," even though it was a really fun ride and it just like looked really cool.

So, I ended up getting a Tesla Model 3. There are a few reasons why. There are only a couple days left in the year, but if you want to get a new car, I highly recommend a Tesla.

You can get a $7,500 tax credit, which drops the price down immediately. You can get 6 I'm not sponsored by Tesla, also, but it was just a really great deal. You get 6 months of free supercharging, which is really nice, so mine will end in June at some point, early June.

And I felt like a band name, Early June, anyway, very indie. So, for those two reasons, that was awesome. Oh, also if you pick it up in store instead of getting it shipped to you, you can save like $4,000 or something like that.

It is crazy. Am I recording? Okay, good. [laughter] I just had a momentary panic.

Like, "Did I actually press record?" Maybe I am a little sleepy. So, if you want to get a Tesla, 100% do it before the end of the year, because I think all those incentives go away, like, for next year, so just FYI. It is a fucking sweet car.

I wanted something fast, like I said, and it is amazing. It can go so fucking fast. It's literally just driving a computer.

I went from like the least technologically advanced car possible. Like, I had to hand crank my windows, hand, lock it. I didn't have a fucking key fob or anything, so definitely went opposite sides of the spectrum, but that just means that I appreciate it way more now.

I have a heated steering wheel! That's so cool! It's like the little things that just are very fun.

There's like a Santa mode that you can put it in, too, which is really fun. It's obnoxious, but I enjoy it, so anyway. I've had a lot of fun driving it and it's just awesome, I just love it.

So, if you need a new car, I highly recommend a Tesla. I didn't think I'd be an electric car person, personally, just because I don't know, I like the sound of like an engine and like exhaust, I don't know why, I just, it really gets me going. [laughter] So, it's just like, [laughter] maybe I'll get like, yeah, like a sports car, but then, yeah, I'm I'm very happy with the Tesla.

I got the all white with the white interior. [pop sound] I thought it would look kind of tacky, but I actually very enjoy, very enjoy it, very much enjoy it, especially if we move to Miami, maybe, I hope, I don't know, probably not. So it just, it looks really neat, and I very much enjoy it, and it's been very fun, and we've been driving fucking everywhere now, and I don't know, it's just like an elevated experience.

Oh, you can watch fucking Netflix in the car, too! We literally, we got food, which I said, I told people who have been in my car, no food, no brown liquids, no anything, because the seats are fucking white. [laughter] I was like, "I don't even have coffee." I've had coffee in there once. It did spill, but not on the white interior, but I was like, "Okay, no more.

I'm going to be that crazy fucking car person now, and whatever." it is just a material thing, so if something happens, whatever, but I don't know, I want to keep it nice at least for like a little bit, and then just like life is just going to happen. But we actually ate in the car and we watched Netflix, too, while we did, and that was actually very fun to be able to do, because like you just have this giant fucking na- iPad.

It's like an iPad Pro essentially just like on your desk, I don't know. It's been very fun, so TLDR, I have loved it. The charging is super fucking quick, too, so it just it literally takes no time.

I mean, maybe like, I think it takes about like a half hour, for the one that's by us. And like the superchargers in like an area where we can just like walk around and like do various different things, so yeah, it's just been really cool. What else?

Oh! We went to a wedding. So, my first ever client for my business, her and her house now husband, oh, that's so weird, [laughter] they got married, and like, obviously, we're just very good friends, too, but they got married.

The wedding was so much fun. I try to not drink now, like, I try to drink very minimally, but going to like real estate conferences, like I've talked about before, my drinking has not like started up again, but like when you're out and like social and stuff like that, I'm like, "Yeah, sure. I'll have a drink or whatever." And I had a lot of fun at the wedding. [laughter] This is why I don't drink anymore. [laughter] it was really fun, though.

It was just like so cute getting to see them, like, tie the knot, and it was a very untraditional wedding, too, which I'm very much all about. And they just, I don't know, it was just like really cute to see everything. They kept it very short, also, which like if we, I ever did anything like that, I would 100% just want to keep it super brief because, like, who gives a fuck?

It's you're there for the party. Amazing food, literally not even for a wedding, some of just the best food I think I've ever had in my life and it was at this really beautiful, it's like a health and wellness center here in Chicago. That sounds like not cool, but it's like a luxury spa kind of thing, and it is just it's absolutely beautiful on the inside, all the food was amazing, everything was just fantastic.

She tasked me with bringing the they had this really cool it was like a phone, but it was like a guest book, so you could leave voicemails. [laughter] I genuinely don't know what I said on that, to be quite honest. Like, I remember all of the night, but there are some parts that get a little fuzzy. [laughter] So, I just know at one point we were in there and my boyfriend's name is Jeff, so we were literally it was like a group of us and we were just chanting, "Jeff!

Jeff! Jeff!" [laughter] for a little bit of time. [laughter] So, I do remember that, but everything else is just a little fuzzy. It was very fun, though, and we had, there were like people that we've met from various other things and like a couple people came in from out of town, so we got to, like, hang out with them, too, which was really fun.

But yeah, it was very fun, and it's always fun to get to see people in that context, too, because then it's just like, I don't know, we're all there for a good time, so it was very fun. Probably shouldn't drink that much anymore ever because I may have embarrassed myself. [laughter] Just when I'm somewhere and there's music playing, I cannot focus on anything.

Like, I just absolutely fucking love the music no matter what it is. Very few things that I don't enjoy musically, but I just like it. So anyway, I got way too into it.

I was dancing like a fucking lunatic, so anyway, I had fun. [laughter] so then, they had a DJ. She was one of the best DJs I think I've ever heard, like for a wedding also specifically, so I Jeff was telling me, I was literally just watching her do her thing, which I vaguely remember. Like, I know I was intent on looking at her board trying to figure out, like, "Oh, what kind is it?

What is she doing?" and all these different things. He said I was staring at her board for like 3 minutes straight, like no joke, like actually 3 minutes, which I was like, "Okay, whatever. Be that fucking creepy weirdo, but I digress." So anyway, related to that, you might be able to see it behind me, but maybe not.

Jeff got me a DJ set up, so like a whole turntable set, not like a turntable, because I already have one of those, but like the entire set up, like the board and everything where you can fade in and out and crossfade and all that fuck like really cool shit. It has been so much fun to play with. I've always wanted to be a DJ, fun fact.

This is like super stupid, but I literally had it on this, it's like when you write out like your goals for what you want for like certain ages and shit, and I was I think 16 or 17, I wanted to be a DJ more than anything in the fucking world. Like, that was what I wanted to do for sure, just to be able to play cool, old tracks, like not like, [singing] ts-ts-ts, like dance music, but actually play like things that people have never heard of before, and like combine that with certain I don't know, I really wanted to be a DJ, like really bad because I'm fucking obsessed with music, like it's kind of weird how obsessed I am. [laughter] Anyway, I always wanted to be a DJ, so now I have the setup, which I don't know why I have just never done this before.

I think it's the fear of, like, I've always wanted this, so now what do I do now that I have it? So anyway, we're not going to go into my psychology. This is like the longest fucking update, but it's been like 3 weeks since I've talked to you, so, anyway.

So, I'm very excited for that, so maybe I'll be making some Buy Amara intro music or something. [laughter] I think that's it for updates. There's just been so much stuff. I like can't even talk about all of it.

There's it's just been too much. It's been really good, though. I'm sorry it's been a little bit since we've talked, but here we are.

And then January, we're just traveling literally the entire fucking month, so we'll see how this goes. [laughter] So anyway, I feel like with all that, we should just get straight into the show, because I already fucking forgot what we're supposed to be talking about, because I have been rambling for that long. I need more coffee. [laughter] Anyway, let's just get into it.

The smallest paintings Rembrandt, the artist, may have ever painted have emerged from private holdings for the first time in two centuries! That's 200 fucking years! Holy shit!

And they're so tiny. So, these are nearly 8 in tall, so not even 8 in tall. And these depict and I'm so sorry, this is Dutch.

I don't fucking speak Dutch. Your frickin' deekie Dutch, I do not speak Dutch, so I'm so sorry. Jan Willemsz van der Pluym and his wife, Jaapgen Carelsdr, I think that's how it's pronounced, if not, that's cool.

Jan was a wealthy plumber in the 1700s, or 1700s, 17th century, [gasp] [laughter] Jan was a wealthy plumber in the 17th century, and they as a family were a super prominent family in Leiden, which is where they lived, fun fact. Their son, Dominicus van der Pluym, married Cornelia van Zuytbroeck, the daughter of Rembrandt's uncle on his mother's side, Willem van Zuytbroeck.

So then, they actually married into Rembrandt's family. So they were like kith and kin. They then had one child, Carel, who was an artist, and who is actually thought to have trained with Rembrandt, which is really cool.

So, they have this Rembrandt family tie, which is probably how these portraits came to be because then it's like, "Oh, yeah. We're family. Paint me." And these are actually really lovely portraits of each person.

I should have them pulled up. So, these are in an octagonal frame, which is so fucking cool looking. I don't know why, I love it.

It has like a very goth feeling to it, which I absolutely love. So, I was just like, "Ooh, I want these in the house." so the sitters, they're seated facing each other, like not full on, like facing each other, they have like the three quarter turn and everything. But yeah, they're all decked out.

They have like a really nice, like, brownish kind of hue in the background, and they just look very chill, like, not a lot going on, obviously, because it's a portrait, but they're very cute and they're just like so little. I love that frame. I love an unconventional frame.

I love anything unconventional, but it was really pretty. So, these were painted in 1635, and they are now said to be the smallest ever formal paintings, excluding studies done by Rembrandt, that he ever created, and obviously, there could be other things that are in private collections, but we don't know about it, so for now, this is what we know about publicly.

So, besides being one of the smallest portraits ever created by Rembrandt, and the octagonal frame, which is actually pretty rare, I believe. They're also super remarkable because they have a virtually unbroken line of provenance. So, like I said, they've been a private been in private collections.

There are only like four people who have actually owned these portraits, which is really interesting. So, I said they were painted in 1635. They remained in the family until 1760 when the great-great-grandson of the original sitters, he passed away and then they were sold at auction.

They were then purchased by a count in Warsaw, Poland. Then they moved to a collection by a baron in France, and you can look all like the exact dates and everything, but I just want to give you the cliffs notes, cliffs notes, [laughter] [snort] ay, ay, ay, cliffs notes, [laughter] so count in Warsaw, baron in France, and then they actually went to the UK where they were listed for sale at Christie's in 1824.

Then they were purchased and put in a private collection in 1824, so it's actually been exactly 200 years, which is really cool, that they've been in this private collection. I just realized that as I was saying it, it's been exactly 200 years. That's pretty fuck, cool. [burp] I'd kombucha before recording this and that was a really bad idea, [laughter] I'm so sorry.

Anywho, these portraits then went up for auction this summer 2023 through Christie's, and they collaborated with the Rijksmuseum to attribute the portraits because they just wanted to verify, obviously, when you're putting something up for auction, somebody's like, "This is done by Rembrandt," you want to verify that this is actually correct.

What's interesting, too, about these is that the age of each sitter is on the back of the portrait, which is cool. So 69 and 70 were their ages respectively, and that like I said is inscribed on the back, so then the museum was able to verify with that those are the correct birth years for them judging by like archival evidence and stuff like that of who the actual people were.

And then in addition to that, they were also able to verify that this was done by Rembrandt using like brushstrokes and all those physical characteristics and stuff like that. Yay, formal analysis! So, these were estimated to sell for between 5 and 8 million pounds, but they actually sold for 11, 11 [laughter] I'm having so much trouble, holy shit. [laughter] These actually sold for 11 million pounds or about $14 million US, to on July 6th to a man named Henry Holterman.

Couldn't find anything about him, so fun fact. So, TLDR, these are now on long term loan for public display at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and they'll be exhibited together alongside several other paintings from Rembrandt's lifetime. I don't know, it's a very sweet little story, so on to our next one, but I really want those octagonal frames.

They look really cool.

Want to own a George Washington portrait? This is actually your chance. [laughter] So, the Met Museum in New York City, they are auctioning off a Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington that they've had in their permanent collection for over 80 years. This portrait you have 100% seen, well, okay, I'm not going to spoil my little punch line, but I'm going to tell you a little bit about this painting and who the fuck Gilbert Stuart is if you have no idea, which he is like a legendary 18th century painter, but I digress.

So, this portrait is from 1795 and it depicts Washington toward the end of his presidency. This is one of over 100 portraits that Gilbert Stuart had painted of Wash- Washington. Why can I not talk? [laughter] This is one of over 100 paintings that Stuart painted of Washington throughout his lifetime.

That's a lot of fucking portraits! 100 portraits? How many pictures do you need?

I guess nowadays we have so many portraits, portraits, [laughter] pictures of ourselves, okay, I give up. You just read the rest [laughter] for the show. So, a lot of portraits of Mr.

Washington. Stuart's most famous portrait, though, is probably the Athenaeum portrait, which is in Boston at the Athenaeum, hence the name, from 1796, that's unfinished because Stuart actually died in 1796 before he could finish this finish this portrait, and it's really cool to see. Not that he died, but see the actual unfinished portrait.

And this portrait is actually, I believe, the image that is used on the $1 bill of George Washington, which is pretty fucking sweet. So, in addition to Washington, though, Stuart basically painted every other major figure of the 18th century. I guess not every major figure, but a lot of different presidents.

I think he painted Jefferson, both John Adams, so John Quincy and John Adams, Abigail Ad- like a whole slew of people, Commodore John Barry, I think, also, who started the Navy, so just a lot of famous figures from the 18th century. But George Washington by and far was very popular to be painted. [laughter] So, the Met also, this is what I was kind of teasing at the beginning, the Met also has another portrait from 17 1795, which is basically the exact same, but that version is more famous than the other painting that they're selling, so, that's why they're putting it up for auction.

I do also want to say, too, deaccessioning is super common in museum and archival fields and like any sort of collection sort of thing. Deaccessioning is basically just when you're removing something from your permanent collection. That's it.

Each institution, though, is going to have very different practices, like the associations that govern everything, so like the American Association for Museum Directors, I think is what it's called, they have guidelines for how you can deaccession something and then, like, what to do with the money, which is basically just buy something else for your permanent collection, so that's why the Met is getting rid of this version so then they can have the proceeds from it, which we'll talk about more then in a second, so then they can take the proceeds and buy something else for their permanent collection, because, like, why do they need two Gilbert Stuart portraits?

Especially if they can get quite a hefty sum for it, then it's like, "Well, yeah. I'll $7,401." [laughter] so then it's like, "Well, yeah. Obviously, I would get money for this because it's just sitting in the collection." If they have another version, like if an archive or a museum has two versions of something, most times they will get rid of the second version, like the least popular one or the less, well intact version, just to be able to make room for other things and then to get the money to buy other things for their collection, because, like, it is difficult having a budget for a museum or an archive or whatever.

We would do that all the time at the archive when I worked there and it's just it's super common practice. If you have two of something, you can just get rid of something else. You can get rid of that second version and then just use the money to buy other things that you desperately, desperately need.

Anywho, TLDR, that is why they are selling this painting at auction. So, just to wrap the story up, it's super brief, but if you want to own this painting, you still have time. So, the American Art Auction will take place through Christie's this January, so in a couple weeks, [laughter] and the portrait is expected to fetch anywhere between $1.5 to $2.5 million making it one of the top lots at this auction.

Now, this actually isn't the highest, so, it hasn't sold yet, so I shouldn't say this, but the this isn't the highest amount ever received for a George Washington painting or a portrait, rather. That was actually in 2018 where one sold for $11.5 million, which made it a total auction record for a Gilbert Stuart portrait painting. [pant] [laughter] it's speculated, though, that this version that is being sold probably won't fetch that much, like the $11.5 million, so it's not expected to break any records, but it still could, you never know.

There have been so many surprising auction things that have happened throughout 2023. I should make a compilation, fuck. Well, whatever. [laughter] But there have been a lot of surprising records that have been broken, so I mean, who knows?

Maybe this could be quite a bang into 2024, quite a bang. That's not what I meant. [laughter] On to our next story.

Year is typically reserved for reminiscing about what happened throughout the year, and then also forecasting what is going to happen in the next year. And one of the common ways that this is done is with the Pantone Color of the Year. If you care anything about design, color, or even just are in the arts field, like you've obviously fucking heard of this, hopefully.

If not, then that's fine. [laughter] Hopefully, but if not, that's totally fine. But basically, at the end of the current year, Pantone releases something called the Color of the Year Announcement and then that is predicting and forecasting the color of the year for the next year. I made that sound so fucking complicated. [laughter] Basically, 2024 color of the year has just been announced, but there is a whole conspiracy about this, which is really fascinating.

But first, the color of 2024 is supposed to be Peach Fuzz, which I'll have more on that later, why they picked it and all that fun, wonderful bullshit, but basically, every year since 2000, so this started like in 1999 is when people were thinking about it, but then the color of the year was announced first in 2000, the Pantone Color Institute has released an annual Color of the Year Announcement every year, which predicts the upcoming year's go-to hue, that's like a much better way to say it, which predicts the upcoming year's go-to hue based on trend analyses and socioeconomic influences according to the company's website, which they have like tons of info about it, so you can go check it out.

Now, however, a rumor has started circulating via TikTok, of course, about how Pantone actually comes to their conclusions for the color of the year. It's very interesting. I don't I just want to start off by saying I don't actually buy this theory personally just because I think a lot of different things go into it, but it is a very interesting theory if it can actually be proven true by any sort of means.

So, it's just it's a lot of speculation, but it's actually very fascinating. So, here's how it started, I believe, and there could be other things that have started it, but this is like the main impetus, I guess I will say. A TikTok user named Ariana Alphonso believes to have started this in August 2023, which like I said, something else could have started it, but this is like the main video that kind of launched this, and then there are a bunch of other ones, but we're going to talk about that in a second.

In the video, she talks about one specific example in recent years where the color of the year correlates to something in the tech field. In her video, one of her examples was in 2017, which I think this was the only example in this video, but then she posted another one, which I'll talk about more in a sec. In 2017, Pantone chose the color Greenery, which she states may appeal to the interests of Android users versus Apple users, who have blue bubbles, so like, you know when you send texts, Apple has blue, Android has green.

That's how you know if they're your friend or not, and [laughter] I'm just teasing. You do you. Obviously, I'm a huge fucking Apple fan, so shocking.

Drive a Tesla and I'm an Apple fan, I belong in Silicon Valley, [snort] [laughter] [laughter] But anyway, she states, though, in this, [sighs] I'm just going off the fucking rails. She states, though, that Greenery, as the color of the year, made no fucking sense, just because people were trending more toward neutral kind of colors, and minimalist sort of design sensibilities, which I do remember.

But I mean, it just feels like now with globalization, it's less homogeneous, I guess I would say, where it's like, "Oh, yeah. This is 100% the color of the year, and everybody's fucking wearing it like in this area." or using it in color desig- like it just feels like everything is everywhere all at once, so you can just do whatever the fuck you want.

But, so, she's saying that Greenery is the color because people were trending more toward neutrals, but I think what she's missing is that Pantone doesn't just focus on what is actually trendy. They are trying to set the trend, so that's where I think the theory kind of comes apart a little bit, but it's still interesting, I still want to entertain it just because I think it's, it's always fun to think about certain possibilities and things like that.

So then, people were in the comments and like just like, "Oh, my god. Yeah, I totally see it." So then, she actually posted another video where she dove into the 2010 to 2022 Pantone colors Color of the Years, [laughter] and she specifically talks about 2022, that color, I forget what it was called, it was Very Peri, something p e r i, fuck, I should have looked this up, but it's like a purply kind of color, it's like a purply blue.

They made a brand new color just for that year. She states that she believes this is because of Meta, which is interesting because Meta's color is blue, it's not this like it's not periwinkle, but it's like a, fuck, I words are escaping me right now, but it's more like a purply kind of blue than actually blue, which is interesting.

So, that theory kind of unravels a little bit, but some people in the comments were saying it actually mirrors the color of Microsoft Teams more so, which that I do see, like there is definitely a similarity to it, which would make sense because Microsoft Teams was widely used during the pandemic, so I digress. But then she also calls attention to the year 2021, which actually had two colors featured, two colors featured, [laughter] which, was like a yellow and like a gray, I'm just keeping it super basic, you can look it up if you're a fucking color nerd, I'm not going to go into the details, I'm not going to give you the names and everything, but it was a yellow and a gray, and then in the video, she's wondering why they actually chose two, especially that combination because of the pandemic, which I actually see it as having because she was saying like it doesn't feel right for the pandemic, which I actually see it as being perfect for it, because you have the gray, like the depressing kind of feeling that everybody was having, but then the yellow, like the hope, and like the goodness that still happened, so, I don't know, I see it as that, but that's just me.

So, on their website for Pantone, they state that, quote, "For Pantone Color of the Year 2021, our two independent colors," gray, yellow, "highlighted how different elements come together to support one another," end quote, which that to me is what signals the pandemic, like moving forward into the future. It's like, "Well, no, we're going to have like this like really good it's like nice cohesion." So then, finally, Alphonso, just to I keep talking about the video, [laughter] but she then quotes an article from House Beautiful where the VP of Pantone states that the color of the year is actually one continuous discussion throughout the year for that following year, versus just relying upon, like, color influencers and things like that, which is the opposite of what she's kind of saying, is that Alphonso, the person who is the TikTok user, who made this video in the first place, she was stating that she believes that tech conglomerates are buying Pantone Color of the Year, whereas Pantone's like, "Well, no.

It's like a general discussion about a variety of things," which I'm going to talk more about that in a second, which is why I think I'm actually siding with Pantone a little bit more, but I'm I'm still very open to whatever it is. So then, in the comments of these videos, which never go to the comments, but these were actually, primarily good, I guess, people were guessing how and why certain colors were picked each year, ranging from, new uniforms for Delta Airlines being like kind of a purple color to like a Tiffany blue because they partnered with Paloma Picasso, to Yelp going public, so then they had like a red, which people are calling it like period red, which I found very funny.

For me, it does feel a little bit like trying to retroactively assign meaning to something, like you can make anything fit into something if you make it do that, which is kind of the problem I have with spirituality a little bit. Like, [laughter] we're going to talk about that more in the next story, [laughter] but it's just you can assign meaning to anything retroactively if you want it to be.

So, that was kind of the problem that I had, but also, Pantone is a business, so it kind of doesn't matter what they want to do with their business. They can just do whatever, which I could also argue, then, if we want to go down this conspiratorial rabbit hole, then is this Ariana Alphonso being paid by Pantone to bring Pantone to the attention of people who could probably just give a fuck less, honestly? [laughter] I don't know.

It's just it's very like I could just keep going and be like, "Oh, okay. So, you're being like people have accused me of being paid by certain companies or things like that just for talking about things, but I've literally seen dick amount of money from anybody, [laughter] so that is not happening." But you could then just be like, "Oh, well she's a plant from Pantone, a plant tone." [laughter] So, [laughter] so it could just be endless, is all I'm trying to say.

So anyway, I don't necessarily buy her logic, also, because she didn't support it with like, fucking, and I'm not trying to be an asshole, but there just like wasn't enough to support it. The person, though, that did change my mind a little bit, was a TikTok user named Ray Lee, who she went by something mommy or whatever, I don't know, I didn't write it down, my bad.

She further builds upon Alphonso's theory. She has her husband sitting on the couch and she's like, she has this whole fucking PowerPoint, which I love a good PowerPoint, but she has her husband sitting on the couch and she's going through this whole PowerPoint showing him and she actually did convince me a little bit more, not 100%, but she did she got way further than Alphonso, which we all need to start somewhere, so kudos to you, Alphonso, for bringing this up.

She basically had all of the colors of the year from Pantone throughout the year with company logos superimposed over them, so she's doing not only formal analysis, but contextual analysis [laughter] [laughter] contextual analysis, because she is then stating why certain companies would have paid for it for that year. So like, there was a Vine logo, there was an Airbnb, Yelp, like I said, Apple, Motorola.

Each one also, it made sense for the year, but like I said, you could just assign meaning to anything to make it make, I don't know. I'm still very skeptical, so, but she definitely had more supporting evidence, which I thought was very interesting. So anyway, that's enough of that.

You can go look on TikTok and watch all of these other Pantone Color of the Year conspiracy videos, and it's very interesting and it's very contentious in some of the comments, for color nerds, [laughter] but TLDR, the color for this year, as I mentioned, for 2024, rather, is Peach Fuzz. Why the fuck Peach Fuzz? It is It's a peach color, like a peachy tone.

According to their website, Pantone states that, quote, "Peach Fuzz captures our desire to nurture ourselves and others. It's a velvety gentle peach tone whose all-embracing spirit enriches mind, body, and soul. Peach Fuzz inspires belonging, recalibration, and an opportunity for nurturing, conjuring up an air of calm, offering us a space to be, feel, and heal, and to flourish from," end quote.

It's a lot of words, but basically just it's supposed to make you feel good, even if you don't feel good. [laughter] And that's just on their website, so you can literally Google, like, Pantone Color of the Year Peach Fuzz and then you can find this article. In the same article, they state that, which I found is interesting how they get to their selection each year, their team of global color experts, quote, "comb the world looking for new color influences.

This can include the entertainment industry, films in production, traveling art collections, new artists, fashion, all areas of design, aspirational travel destinations, new lifestyles, playstyles," which I don't know what the fuck that means, "or enjoyable escapes, as well as socioeconomic conditions." They do also state that this can stem from new technologies, materials, textures, even upcoming sporting events that have like worldwide attention, and relevant social media platforms, so they do address that.

With all of that in mind, though, it does make way more sense that like, I feel like Pantone I mean, who knows? They could actually be receiving money from these various different companies to at least be like, "Hey, maybe consider this," or it could just be a total lottery behind the scenes and that could 100% be the case and I could just be a fucking idiot being like, "No, it's not." But I just I feel like there's more to it, but again, I could just be naive and just be like, "In a perfect world." Though, this is really interesting, Pantone does already have several collaborations set up for their Peach Fuzz color, and one of them includes Polaroid and like a couple other businesses, so it could definitely be I don't know, I'm on the fence.

I'm just I'm on the fence. I think it is a very interesting theory, but I think I need to see a little bit more supporting evidence and documentation and things like that, but I'm not discrediting it at all. Like, it is very much still on the table as a possibility, so, I don't know.

TLDR, it's just very interesting, you never know what you're going to find on TikTok, and peach is the color for 2024, apparently, so I'm very curious to see what company emerges or rises to prominent It could be Skims. Isn't that their color scheme? The Kim Kardashian brand, Skims.

I guess kind of. It's not like a peachy color, it's like a yeah, it's a little more brown toned to it. Okay, never mind.

But it could be any sort of company. I guess specifically tech is what people are talking about, so I don't know, we'll see what happens in 204- 2024. [laughter] [laughter] We'll see what happens in 2024. Anyway, on to our final story, and I'm going to try to keep this as civil as possible. [laughter]

Okay, so a couple notes at the top of this story because, I am not going to get too heated about this, but I also am. I typically try to keep religion and politics out of this podcast, just generally speaking. Some things do happen, like everything is influenced by something and you cannot escape religion and politics, even though they're like the two things that you shouldn't talk about, blah, blah, blah. [laughter] Sorry, I just wanted to make sure I was still recording.

So, I typically try to keep those two things out of my podcast specifically because also I'm not out here to offend anybody. I genuinely could give a fuck less what you celebrate, who you believe in, whatever, as long as you're a decent person. As long as you are not a bag of steaming shit, like this person is, sorry, [laughter] [clears throat] I don't care.

You could fucking celebrate whatever you want. Like, I genuinely do not care. I do not care at the end of the day, as long as you're a good person, plain and simple, that's it.

And I would be upset with this story no matter what religious sect was attacked. It doesn't matter if it was Christianity, Hindu, like, I don't care. It's fucked up no matter what it is, and it's insane.

And the fact that this was celebrated by people is even more insane and it tells you about their moral character more than anything else. I am not religious at all. I'm actually non-theistic or atheistic, just to put it out there.

I don't believe in anything. I'm not a spiritual person, either. I'm so sorry.

Some of my friends are and I love them to death. You do you. You believe in whatever the fuck you want and I will love you forever.

You could be any political affiliation as long as you're not a shitbag, and I will love you forever. So, it genuinely does, obviously, I'm left-leaning, like, why the fuck am I doing an art podcast? [laughter] so, it just you do you. You should have the space to worship whatever the fuck you want as long as you're not hurting anybody or being an asshole, so I just wanted to start off with that.

I would literally be upset if somebody did this to any other religious figure, statue. So, I digress. Now, let's get into the story.

So, the Iowa State Capitol did something that I actually found very commendable, which, because Iowa, you don't think, you don't think a lot of You think very homogeneous, you don't think a lot of celebrating of various different beliefs and things like that. So, in their state capitol, they had a multi-denominational display, so they had like a nativity scene, they even had a message from an atheist group because, like, you don't have any religious iconography, obviously.

And this was actually the first year that the Satanic Temple was included, and I know as soon as you hear Satanic Temple you're like, "Fuck you, you're crazy." But this is This is messed up. Like, this is really not cool, and again, for any religion, I don't care, not cool. This is religious intolerance, to be totally open.

That's how I read this. So anyway, there was a statue of Baphomet, who is like the central figure of the Satanic Temple, and just to let you know, it is a symbol of divine balance, so like male fee- or like masculine, feminine, male, female, good, evil. Like, that's kind of the gist of it.

So, it's not supposed to be this crazy fucking scary thing, because people have bastardized the Church of Satan. Again, I'm not religious, I'm not part of the Church of Satan, [laughter] I'm just saying, there's supposed to be an equilibrium and a divine balance to this figure, like, that's what it's supposed to be. So, just going to leave it at that.

So, the capitol, like I said, does this every year, but this is the first year that the Satanic Temple was included, which is very lovely, and that they, contributed a display. Well, someone who was not in the Christmas spirit or a good, Christian, whatever, they claim they're Christian, I'm not saying anything. [laughter] so a former conservative political candidate was not in the holiday spirit of inclusion and allegedly decapitated said statue and threw the head in a garbage bag and totally just messed up their entire display.

He, like, threw the statue over and everything. Michael Cassidy, who unsuccessfully, thank fuck, ran for a Mississippi US House of Representatives seat last year, was charged with criminal mischief in the fourth degree. Even before this act of religious intolerance, though, this display, this tiny display at a state capitol ruffled so many feathers because people have nothing better to do. [laughter] Okay, I'm not going down that rabbit hole.

But, the statue had already caused quite an uproar with Republicans, again, you have your own political affiliation, I have mine. I will respect you no matter what, but if you're a shitbag, I fucking hate you. So Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and then Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, she actually, they both spoke out publicly about this, which totally fine, you have freedom of speech, do whatever, but then she called the depiction absolutely objectionable and added that, quote, "In a free society, the best response to objectionable speech is more speech," end quote, and then asked her fellow Iowans to pray alongside of her for what, I'm not 100% sure, but I hope it was a pony, and, [laughter] so, they were very upset with this display, which is just it's comical to me, I will leave it at that.

So, Cassidy, the guy who did this, allegedly told Fox News in an interview that the statue had, quote, "touched a nerve", so he, quote, "pulled his head off and put it in a garbage bag." Like, that is just so fucking up to me. Any religious intolerance like that pisses me off, and that is not cool at all. It's supposed to be a multi-denominational, like, they were invited to be there.

It wasn't like it was a protest. It wasn't like it was anything. The fact that something like that touched your nerve that much and incited that in you, you have some serious work you need to do, buddy boy.

You are not a Christian as you claim to be, which, again, that's up to you. A lot of words that I am keeping inside. [laughter] So, just to round out the story and finish it, the state the Satanic Temple, just as a whole, then took to Twitter stating that the, TST, Satanic Temple, Iowa's Capitol Holiday display was destroyed, but they're determined to rebuild and committed to religious freedom, end quote, which is very lovely.

And then they asked for a donation to cover legal costs and support religious freedom. Cassidy now faces a $2,600 fine and up to a year in prison, and this is what fucking pissed me off even more, conservative donors rushed to his aid and have allegedly raised almost $80,000 for his legal defense fund. Turning Point USA, which is an organization dedicated to entrenching conservative politics in high schools and colleges, pledged $10,000 alone to this initiative, and then, Ron DeSantis, who I mentioned earlier, stated that he'll also contribute money, so I wrote some very strong words here, [laughter] which I'm not going to read out, [laughter] but, it's just insane.

I mean, I would also, if I read that the Church of Satan was ripping heads off of Jesus figures, I would also have a very similar feeling where I'd be like, "What the fuck is wrong with you?" So, the fact that this happened and is being celebrated, all from people who proclaim to be part of a religion that's supposed to be about acceptance and love, like, you are off your fucking rocker.

That's where I'm going to leave that. I could say much more, but I will not, and because this will be out there forever, and who knows, maybe I'll change my mind in the future and become a fucking crazy religious person, but I doubt it. Anyway, [laughter] so that was this episode of Buy Amara, we went everywhere, and I'm so sorry it's been a really long time since we talked, but I'm going to try to figure out how to record on the road more better. [laughter] So, I'm going to try, the audio and video quality might not be as great, but at least we'll be consistent and we'll be together, and that's all that matters.

So, anyway, I hope you had a very happy holiday season, and oh, this is the last episode for this year, so happy end of 2023. I will see you in 2024. I hope you've had a decent holiday season.

I know the holidays are really tough. It is literally my least favorite time of year just from all the stress and pressure, so you are not alone if you are also not doing very well this holiday season. So, anyway, I love you.

Always remember that, and I will see you in the New Year. So, I'm Amara Andrew, never stop creating.