WHAT DO THE VICTORIAN ESTHETICS OF OLD POISON BOTTLES, A TRADITIONAL PEA SOUP WITH MEAT PIE, AND GUTENBERG’S FIRST PRINTING PRESS HAVE IN COMMON?
ALL THESE THINGS INSPIRED INTERNATIONAL DESIGN STUDIOS TO CONJURE UP THEIR EXTRAORDINARY CREATIONS FOR THE SECOND EDITION OF THE CREATIVE PROJECT MAKE A MARK
After a hugely successful launch, LEONHARD KURZ, together with Avery Dennison and Estal, presented the eagerly awaited continuation of the platform for creative packaging design in 2022. The groundbreaking project was created in 2021 to drive innovative and sustainable solutions in luxurious packaging design. The resulting synergies between renowned designers and the processing industry fostered creativity, innovative spirit, and close interaction on both sides.
Unlike other formats, ‘Make a Mark’ is not a competition. On the contrary, the union offers a kind of creative playground around the future of packaging design. The focus is on creative freedom for the designers and the learning experience for all involved. The designers have the opportunity to experiment with a wide range of materials completely independently and without any cost pressure. This led to completely new solutions that would have been unthinkable before.
The project is planned to run for a period of three years. Every year, the Spanish expert for glass bottles Estal, the American label manufacturer Avery Dennison, and KURZ, as a specialist for high-quality transfer decorations, provide around twenty design agencies with knowledge and material for the production and decoration of packaging. Other key players in the industry, such as label printers or manufacturers of capsules and closures, are also involved.
Letting the imagination run wild and creating the unexpected - this time the requirements for the design agencies were so simple and yet demanding at the same time.
And that’s exactly what they delivered. This year’s concepts invite us to rethink what is possible in terms of packaging design, and what positive social messages packaging can convey.
For example, Appartement 103 from France submitted ‘Saulvage,’ a design for spirits that addresses the issue of climate disasters. The team developed a concept that raises awareness, attracts attention, and conveys a message.
Both the name and the product form a bridge between destruction and creation: The newly coined word Saulvage is a combination of ‘Sauvage,’ which means ‘wild nature’ in French, and ‘Salvage’ meaning ‘rescue.’
In reference to disasters such as the loss of rainforest areas in the Amazon and the destruction of forests in California and Australia, a piece of burnt wood from these regions is placed in each whiskey bottle. As an organic element, wood is reminiscent of these environmental disasters and draws attention to the challenges faced by humanity.
On each side label, the origin of the wood is emphasized by a game of transfer finishes from KURZ: A punched window puts the piece of wood at the center. Avery Dennison’s bio-recycled paper was also used to create the concept using sustainably sourced materials.
‘Make a Mark’ means making an impression. And that’s exactly what the Officina Grafica design studio made the premise of its work. The Italians chose water scarcity as the central theme for their project entitled ‘Manifesto.’ With the belief that everyone, regardless of gender, race, religion, income, or social class, has a right to clean water, the team took inspiration from the universal resource that is water. The bottle is made of 100% recycled glass, the design on the outside reflects running water, while the manifesto is positioned inside - and thus centrally: The right to water as a fundamental element of an ethical society.
However, the 20 designs from 2022 also included many playful touches: Whether from past eras, from other cultures, or from everyday circumstances.
For example, the British Black Eye Project took inspiration from the world of ominous poison mixers during Queen Victoria’s time in its mysterious blue shimmering vodka bottle “What’s your poison?.”
In stark contrast, there’s the minimalist packaging of Black Squid Design. The gin “The Floater” resonates with Australian cuisine: A pie floater is a meat pie that floats upside down in pea soup. The dish is best served after a night out on the town - in keeping with the contents of the bottle.
GINTOGRAPHY (gin & typography) from Argentina’s SURE Brandesign is a tribute to the first printing press with movable letters developed by Johannes Gutenberg in 1440.
All these exceptional projects, presented in the second edition of Make a Mark, demonstrate the im-mense talent, ingenuity, and collaborative spirit of the designers, finishers, and manufacturers involved. At the end of the project, a book and a sample packages were created, as was the case with the first is-sue of Make a Mark. These showcase all the designs in detail and present the ideas and intentions of the designers behind their prototypes.
Would you like more insights into the innovation platform for the packaging design of the future? See the full range of exclusive Make a Mark designs online at www.makeamark.world .
Interested in the first issue of Make a Mark? You can find the KURZ Orofin article on the launch of the design series at Make a Mark: Collaboration trumps Competition.
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