Turning wine into water

In order to raise money to provide impoverished regions of the globe with a decent water supply, six contemporary artists have redesigned the wine labels of six prestigious Italian winemakers.

The concept was conceived by Mario Cristiani, president of the Associazione Arte Continua in San Gimignano, Tuscany. He is hoping to sell the 300 boxed sets, each containing the six wines and poster-sized blow-ups of the individual labels for €1,500 each.

Top wines including Banfi Summus, Castello di Ama Chianti Classico and Cesani Luenzo, all from the Siena region of Italy, were donated. Each winery gave 500 bottles to the project, called Art x Wine = Water (Arte x Vino = Acqua).

Vincente Todoli, director of London’s Tate Modern art gallery, was asked to pick six artists to illustrate one label each. Richard Hamilton, Roni Horn, Lothar Baumgarten and Michelangelo Pistoletto were among those who agreed to take part.

The idea is not new – Bordeaux first growth Château Mouton-Rothschild invites a major artist every year to design the label for the first wine. Artists to be found on the Mouton labels include Picasso, Cocteau, Braque, Henry Moore, Andy Warhol and Balthus.

The money made from the project will go to providing water for Brazilian and Senegalese villages.

Written by Tony Aspler