MACHAS

GOD SAVE THE (OTHER) QUEEN

For someone who grew up in a democratic republic, it is always quite fascinating to witness the interest that comes with anything that involves another country’s reigning family. At first I thought that the Love For The Monarchy was a very British affair, probably fueled by centuries of glorious history as well as years of tabloid gossip (Lady D) and music iconoclasm (the Sex Pistols). 

That was until Dutch Queen Beatrix abdicated in favour of her son Willem-Alexander and it became clear that the enthusiasm for Kings & Queens was not just a British trademark, and that this royal fascination went beyond the shores of the Channel. 

The celebrations for the new Dutch King were nothing short of grand, with the elegant Royal Family greeted by the cheering of a whole country swept up in a bright orange frenzy. Nespresso - a beacon for sleek style and delicious coffee - commissioned Spiros Halaris to interpret the packaging of a special blend of coffee especially made to celebrate the occasion. “The project aimed  to create a unique limited edition packaging that people would like to collect and keep as memorabilia of this important day for the Netherlands”, Spiros told us. “The brief asked for the two royals to be illustrated in such way that they would look strong and iconic on the chic Nespresso packaging.”

What challenges did you face while working on this project? How did you overcome them? 
I particularly enjoy projects that take me out of my comfort zone or let me explore new territories with my work and this one was a combination of both. It gave me the opportunity to combine a portraiture technique in a different format and application.
My greatest challenge was to capture with basic strokes and lines the two royal portraits while ensuring that they remain recognizable and iconic. I combined elements of my more usual portraiture interpretations with loose bold hand drawn strokes that are easily transferable to print.

The subject was obviously very important for the Dutch people, did you have to be careful about anything in particular?
I think I had to be more precise and perhaps not entirely expressionistic as the final result had to be an iconic interpretation of these very important royal figures. I initially thought the spiral loose lines I used for their hair may be a bit risky but in the end they received a good reaction and worked really well for the brand and the product.

The limited edition coffee will be available until June 2012 in all Nespresso stores in Holland.