The revered Peter Blake’s work with Green & Black’s to create a mosaic featuring the refreshed — and more colourful — packaging has been widely publicised and acclaimed in the past few weeks since its unveiling (we’re proud to say they are one of our most celebrated and loved clients).
But, we wanted to ask the bigger question, «Who inspired whom?» — and, what could this mean not just for the brand but for creativity and the barriers between art and design moving forward?
It is really interesting to see not just how much the Green & Black’s brand has evolved but how it has radically changed the face of organic chocolate: moving it into the luxury sector and now, through this new incarnation, taking on an extra level of meaning by being made into art. We can’t help but draw parallels between this project and what Peter Blake’s American Pop Art predecessor, Andy Warhol, did for Campbell’s by giving its humble soup can a ubiquitous, legendary and iconic status that has never been challenged…Will this do the same for Green & Black’s?
It relates to the link between art and popular culture and the greater emphasis on, and involvement with, art our culture has. Art could be said to represent freedom of ideas and expression, while design is dictated by needs. But, as in this case, the two merge or the order is switched, does this mean that the ‘brand’ now counts for more than the idea? This is a great testament to the power of design as a creative – and commercial — force to be reckoned with. Do artists continue to be our visionaries or is their place being taken by designers, whose purpose driven approach makes them more relevant and, therefore, directional?
Green & Black’s are also holding a competition for additional designs using the new packaging – www.theartofgreenandblacks.com — Art for the masses? The chance to bring out the designer in all of us? The debate goes on…Essentially, this challenges expectations and gives us a new way of looking at the brand from an artistic perspective…What next? Who will inspire whom?