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Color

Core Colors

Metallic gold, black and white make up our core color palette. Just like we "own the V," we deploy a consistent, iconic palette. These colors are unmistakably Vanderbilt. Gold is an ancient symbol of wealth and beauty 
with unique material properties. It's a conductor of heat and electricity, a reflector, a catalyst. It's malleable, ductile and never corrodes. Vanderbilt's association with gold is distinctive and should be protected through diligence about how it's deployed.

  • Metallic Gold

    Pantone  871 C | Hex FEEEB6 to B49248 | R254 G238 B182 to | R180 G146 B72

  • Flat Gold

    Pantone 4024 C | Hex CFAE70 | R207 G174 B112 | C20 M29 Y64 K0

  • Black

    Pantone Black C | Hex 1C1C1C | R10 G10 B10 | C0 M0 Y0 K100

  • White

    Hex FFFFFF | R255 G255 B255 | C0 M0 Y0 K0
metallic
metallic 2

A Note on Metallic Gold

Metallic color looks best expressed materially where light can interact with it. Imagine the metallic gold paint gleaming on a football helmet, or metallic gold foil to accentuate the Vanderbilt seal on an event invitation or diploma. 

In 99% of cases, metallic gold ink (PMS 871 C) should be specified when printing with Vanderbilt Printing Services or another professional printing company. Many new "digital" printers are capable of printing metallic gold. The fallback flat gold should only be used when a printer, such as an office color copier, can't accommodate metallic ink. Consult your vendor about using metallic inks.

In digital contexts (for example, websites, presentations and video) we use a metallic gradient to mimic the reflectivity of gold. Our gradient is subtle, pure and bright. 

Accessibility

Use of contrast and color is essential to accessibility and to ensuring that our design work is available to all audiences. Our core palette is high-contrast by nature. The color pairings shown below are Level AA accessible. WCAG AA requires a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text. To ensure compliance, please don't stray from these pairings.

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Black on white and white on black have a 17:1 contrast ratio. Flat gold on black has a 5.75:1 ratio. Black on metallic gold is also 5.75:1, while black on flat gold is 8:1, and oak on white is 4.65:1.

Secondary Colors: Neutrals

While our primary palette deploys a high-contrast triad, these colors are supported by warm neutrals: cream, taupes and grays, with higher-saturation hues for impact. Our core colors will make up 90% of use, while 10% can be made up of secondary neutral accents. 

  • Dark Gray

    Hex 777777 | R119 G119 B119 | C0 M0 Y0 K53

  • Light Gray

    Hex E4E4E4 | R228 G228 B228 | C0 M0 Y0 K11

  • Sand

    Hex E0D5C0 | R224 G213 B192 | C12 M13 Y23 K0

  • Cream

    Hex F5F3EF | R245 G243 B239 | C3 M2 Y4 K0

Secondary Colors: Saturated

For data visualization needs, such as creating a bar chart, or to support Vanderbilt sub-brands such as camps or events, you may take advantage of our higher-chroma secondary palette. Oak and highlight will be the two brighter accents relied upon most. 

  • Sky

    Hex B3C9CD | R179 G203 B205 | C30 M12 Y16 K0

  • Highlight

    Hex ECB748 | R236 G183 B72 | C7 M29 Y84 K0

  • Oak

    Hex 946E24 | R148 G110 B36 | C36 M51 Y100 K18

  • Sage

    Hex 8BA18E | R139 G161 B142 | C49 M26 Y47 K0
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Color Themes

When planning your color theme, consider the four examples above which show ways to use our color system to achieve very different moods. A tonal palette appears more subtle and less contrasted. The secondary color theme employs our brighter highlight as a background, which could prove useful for Vanderbilt-related events such as annual conferences.