Creativity brightens up the 2023 Ernesto Illy International Coffee Award with 9 illustrations bringing together art and coffee

Nine artists will each create a poster for each one of the 9 countries that qualified as finalists for the award celebrating the best sustainable coffee

TRIESTE, Italy, Nov. 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- To celebrate the 8th Ernesto Illy International Coffee Award, illycaffè renews its special creative project that combines art and coffee culture by enlisting nine international illustrators to each create a poster that will give a visual and artistic identity to every one of the nine countries that qualified as finalists for the award.

Through this initiative, illycaffè aims to use language, imagery, and the lively colour palette of the selected illustrators to relate one of the core components of its corporate culture and ethics: the legacy of values that underpins the world of coffee production and its countries.

Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Brazil, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Nicaragua, and Rwanda are the nine countries that qualified as finalists for the 2023 Ernesto Illy International Coffee Award, named in honour of the visionary leader of illycaffè, the son of the company's founder and a pioneer in virtuous collaboration with growers to produce high-quality sustainable coffee. Through this project, the nine countries are also the stops along an artistic voyage to discover their local colours and atmospheres. Each with their own style, the nine artists each created a poster representing the colours of the country they were assigned and recalling the aroma of its coffee.

Costa Rica was assigned to the Berlin-based creative duo ZEBU, illustrators, painters, and screen printers, while the simple, geometrical lines of the Swiss illustrator Alice Hoffman will trace a portrait of Ethiopia. Nicaragua, the land of lakes and volcanos, is depicted by the bold and contrasting colours of the artist Marina Ester Castaldo, while the faces and customs of Brazil come to life in the vivid drawings of the designer Angela McKay.

The magical atmosphere of India's land is represented by the U.S. illustrator Abbey Lossing in a tangle of motifs and figures tied together by a playful energy, which crops up again in Liv Lee's tribute to El Salvador with its extravagant depictions of plants, flowers, and fruits. The evocative landscapes of Rwanda, the land of a thousand hills, come to life through the bold colours and vibrant brushstrokes of the illustrator Fabian Lavater, while the iconic, minimalistic, and colourful lines of the illustrator Miranda Sofroniou portray Guatemala. Finally, the artist Alexander Khabbazi takes us on a journey to discovered Honduras, Central America's uncontaminated paradise.

Starting on November 13^th, the nine posters that aim to capture the essence of the nine finalists for the 2023 Ernesto Illy International Coffee Awards 2023 will be unveiled on illycaffè's social media, relating how different atmospheres, cultures and flavours can be interpreted and celebrated through art and beauty.

Artists & Countries:

1.  Zebu / Costa Rica
 (@z_e_b_u)

2.  Alice Hoffman / Ethiopia
(@bureau_alice)

3.  Marina Ester Castaldo/ Nicaragua
 (@marinaestercastaldo)

4.  Angela McKay /Brasil
 (@ohkiistudio)

5.  Abbey Lossing/ India
(@abbey_lossing)

6.  Liv Lee / El Salvador
 (@liv.leeee)

7.  Miranda Sofroniou / Guatemala
 (@miranda_illustration)

8.  Fabien Lavater / Rwanda
 (@lavater_art)

9.  Alex Khabbazi/ Honduras
(@kbar.design)

illycaffè is an Italian family-owned company, founded in Trieste in 1933 which has always set itself the mission of offering the best coffee to the world. It produces a unique 100% Arabica blend composed of 9 different ingredients. The company selects only 1% of the best Arabica beans in the world. Every day 8 million cups of illy coffee are served in over 140 countries around the globe, in the cafés, restaurants and hotels, in single-brand cafés and shops, at home and in the office, in which the company is present through subsidiaries and distributors. Since its foundation, illycaffè has oriented its strategies towards a sustainable business model, commitment that it strengthened in 2019 by adopting the status of Benefit Company and in 2021 becoming the first Italian coffee company to obtain the international B Corp certification. Since 2013 the company is also one of the World Most Ethical Companies. Everything that is "made in illy" is about beauty and art, the founding principles of the brand, starting from its logo, designed by artist James Rosenquist, up to illy Art Collection cups, decorated by over 125 international artists, or coffee machines designed by internationally renowned designers. With the aim of spreading the culture of quality to growers, baristas and coffee lovers, the company has developed its Università del Caffè which today holds courses in 25 countries around the world. In 2021, Rhône Capital became a minority shareholder of illycaffè with the aim of contributing to the company's international growth plans. In 2022, the company had 1230 employees and a turnover of €567,7 million. The illy single-brand network has 190 points of sale in 34 countries.

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SOURCE illy