‘Istriana’ olive oil bottle design wins prestigious Wood Pencil award in London

‘Istriana’ olive oil bottle design wins prestigious award (Photo: Studio Tumpić/Prenc)

The award from one of the most prestigious design and advertising competitions, the British D&AD, is in the hands of Croatia’s Studio Tumpić/Prenc. 

They won the Wood Pencil in the Packaging Design category for the design of the “Istriana” olive oil bottle for their client, E Pluribus Unum.

D&AD, short for Design and Art Direction, is a British organization founded in 1962 with the aim of promoting excellence in design and advertising. Each year, it raises the bar of quality in this industry through its annual competition and the awarding of D&AD Pencils, which are considered the highest creative achievement in the field.

At this year’s edition of this iconic competition, over 300 jury members, all leaders in the creative sector, selected winners among a staggering 12,243 entries from 77 countries around the world. Studio Tumpić/Prenc is the only representative from Croatia and the region. The Wood Pencil award for the “Istriana” project declares it as one of the best works of the year in its category, serving as an example of creative excellence for future generations who will seek inspiration from D&AD.

(Photo: Studio Tumpić/Prenc)

The design by these brilliant creatives, deserving its place among the best of the best, emphasizes the connection with the past. Namely, Istrian olive oil was mentioned as a synonym for quality even during the Roman Empire, but with its decline, Istria no longer enjoyed the reputation it had in the Roman period. 

However, due to its natural conditions for producing top-quality olive oil, it gradually regained its status as one of the best regions for olive cultivation in the world during the 1990s. It could be said that by rediscovering fragments of forgotten knowledge, it breathes life into modern olive cultivation. 

Similarly, the bottle represents the reconstruction of various fragments of an amphora, reconnected into a meaningful whole. Furthermore, once placed in the box, the bottle represents the heart-shaped form of a Roman amphora from the Istrian region, in which olive oil was stored and transported. Additionally, the terracotta’s orange tone, specially mixed for use in the packaging, contains a percentage of genuine Istrian soil.

(Photo: Studio Tumpić/Prenc)

In the realization of this project, the Studio collaborated with the Italian companies Wine & Industrial Packaging and Tipografia Crivellari 1918.

The creative minds behind this winning idea were awarded at the D&AD Festival held in London last week. 

On this occasion, they stated, “D&AD is one of the most esteemed festivals in the industry, so receiving recognition alongside big brands present there, such as Nike, KFC, Mars, Calvin Klein, Google, Burger King, NFL, and other Wood Pencil winners, is certainly a great honor, especially since the product’s role from the beginning has been to promote Istria, or rather Croatia, with its design and name. This is another way to achieve its goal,” concludes Studio Tumpić/Prenc.

Anselmo Tumpić and Sara Prenc-Opačic (Photo credit: Martina Kofol)