“Skål” is a Swedish brännvin brand I developed for my packaging class in the fall of 2022. Its iconography is inspired by Swedish culture and the annual midsummer festival celebrated. The maypole serves as the central motif, not only etched in the bottle but influencing it’s shape as well.
Research
Research began in the library looking to Swedish folk art for inspiration. I really loved the flat illustrations of people and how the progression of time was depicted. A lot of imagery featured the midsummer festival and the maypole, which went on to serve as the motif for the brand.
I also wanted a frame of reference for what other bottles looked like in the same market. The Svenskt bottle really caught my eye with its long shape and served as one of the main inspirations for the final bottle.
Wordmark
The wordmark went through a few different iterations. I wanted it to provide a sharp, strong feeling to emphasize the crispness of the liquor. In the end, it successfully encompassed this.
The typeface for the wordmark is Eksell. Eksell is a Swedish typeface developed by Olle Eksel in 1962. The stencil weight used created a stark look to the wordmark that is especially present when etched into the bottle.
Etching
The imagery etched into the front of the bottle represents the maypole in action. I combined two different illustrations found in my research and reinterpreted them to create this new visual. The composition of the final image is inspired by Swedish folk art while also being comprised of it.
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