Dutch Packaging Design

An international roundup of contemporary packaging design by Taschen: On sale soon!
Packaging is a highly underrated art form. As the first thing a consumer sees when looking at a product, the packaging can make or break a sale. Every year, the Pentawards celebrate the art of the package by presenting awards to designs from around the world. Featuring a selection of over 400 works from 30 countries, this book brings together all the Pentawards winners from 2011 and 2012. This well of inspiration is not just aimed at design and marketing professionals but anyone with an interest in the creative process of packaging.
The editor: Pentawards is the first and only worldwide competition dedicated to packaging design in all its forms, open to anyone associated with its creation and/or marketing. Aside from prize-giving, Pentawards’ mission is the worldwide promotion of packaging design among companies, media, economic and political authorities, and the general public. Further information: www.pentawards.org

The characteristic brown beer bottle will turn just as green as the bottles that Heineken sells worldwide. The Brown bottle is a relic of Dutch appointments made decades ago to redeem deposit-bottles. Brown glass is recycled by most Dutch brewers, so it doesn’t matter which Brewer is taking in a bottle. Green glass is much less established. First, the green bottle was intended as an export bottle, but over the years it has become the color of the Heineken brand. The exchange operation began twenty years ago. In 1992 the Red cap disappeared, six years afterwards the yellow crates turned green and since 2000 all Lightboxes are green as well.

Again a wonderfull asset for our bookshelf, “packed” with inspiration: THE ART OF PACKAGE DESIGN. A recent assembly of international designers is creating highly outstanding and savvy designs to complement the nature and function of a product. Editor Wendy Xu included the Atelier LaDurance Japanese Denim packaging in the publication that is about innovative packaging designs that functions beyond ‘simply product wrappers’. A creative treasure published by Gingko Press: www.gingkopress.com

A fine example of what pakaging can do besides just containing and/or selling a product, given by Designworks Melbourne. These air-instruments are part of a ‘Play Air Campagne’, a campaign which helped raise money for an organisation called The Song Room. The Song Room is a charitable organisation who help ensure that underprivileged schools can allow their students to partake in creativity. Deservedly nominated for a Cannes Lions award for Promo & Activation.

crEAte is the-must-have book for every designer connected to the world of food and beverage. Six chapters:’Food Activista’, ‘Wholehearted’, Smart Food’, ‘Packaging’, ‘Food Spaces’ and ‘Typologies’ deal with different aspects of design within gastronomy. An inspiring book published by Gestalten, Berlin 2008

Boxed and Labeled: the inspiring book for the “out-of-the-box” thinking packaging designer. Some of the designs seem to be almost impossible to make and extremely creative, others are beautifully stylish. But all expand the way of thinking about packaging design. For sure al designs strengthen the appearance of the products being packed. Published by Gestalten, Berlin 2009