HOW CYBERPUNK COLORS TOOK THE INDUSTRY BY STORM by Marc Primo Warren describes how cyberpunk has spread throughout all art forms.

1. HOW CYBERPUNK
COLORS TOOK THE
INDUSTRY BY
STORM
by Marc Primo Warren

2. Cyberpunk palettes made a retro comeback
in 2020, not only with the release of the
highly-anticipated Cyberpunk 2077 video
game.
Somehow, the neon dystopia themes struck
a power chord with both millennial and Gen
Z consumers in terms of digital assets.

3. • The history of this enigmatic concept dates back to
after World War II when electronics were in its early
stages and people were fascinated with the many
possibilities it could bring. Soon, science fiction tales
of androids and flying cars became more prevalent in
certain art circles which eventually gave birth to
Cyberpunk. One can trace its roots to authors Philip K.
Dick’s imagining of the concept via Do Androids Dream
of Electric Sheep (1968) set in a post-nuclear fallout of
San Francisco, which eventually was adapted into film
as the box-office hit Blade Runner (1982).

4. Soon, more filmmakers and artists adapted the
concept in such films as 1984’s Neuromancer and
in the 1988 anime Akira, creating tropes that
refuse to die out with time and generations. From
then, hundreds of contemporary corporate logos
have used the neon colors of the theme in their
brand guidelines, while fans link art to reality by
suggesting how we are now living that dystopian
future that was created by Cyberpunk in the ‘80s
through Artificial Intelligence and Machine
Learning technology. Somehow, they are right
which makes the theme all the more impactful for
today’s generation.

5. By the turn of the new millennium, hits like The
Matrix series further pushed the Cyberpunk
envelope into the mainstream along with video
games. Artists such as Michel Clansen and
Bráulio Amado also used its elements in their
respective designs to capture the world’s
imagination and bring out the aesthetic merits of
digital technology when integrated with retro
futurism.
Today, Cyberpunk continues to prove its
significance in designs that signify anti-corporate
domination, as well as the rebellion against
drunk power, megalomania, and corruption.
More importantly, however, it gives people hope
to rise above all of the mania as many Cyberpunk
stories have suggested in the past.