Trivium announced the winners of its Forever Canvas Challenge 2022, a design competition that invited the worldwide creative community to create show-stopping graphics for a variety of Trivium’s infinitely recyclable metal bottles and cans. 

The first-place designs, from Caitlin Wagg, a graphic design student from Australia, Ines De Cueto Escobar, a design student from Spain, and Sebastian Ricardo, a designer from Argentina, bring Trivium’s infinitely recyclable metal packaging to life in several types of product design categories: beverage, pet food, and sanitiser containers. 

Because metal recycles forever, it is a gleaming blank canvas that can uniquely come back for more, over, and over, again: inspiring the inaugural competition’s name, Forever Canvas. Each of the winners’ clever, eye-catching, memorable designs champion this highly sustainable packaging form.

Winner: Caitlin Wagg

Caitlin chose the beverage bottle category for her HB juice idea. She wowed the judges with her bold and eye-catching design for a range of juices. 

Caitlin’s elegant design was inspired by the iconic yellow HB pencil. Her idea sprang from the insight that, to think creatively, we must fuel our brains with the proper nutrients. 

She said: “My goal for HB Juice was simple. I wanted to design a healthy beverage that encouraged every Australian to think creatively and live a happier and healthier lifestyle. Need to recharge your creativity? Keep your creative juices flowing with HB Juice!”

Winner: Ines De Cueto Escobar

Ines chose the food can category for her playful cat food design, inspired by her lifelong fascination with food and its packaging, and her beloved cat Ludi. 

Ines, a design student from Spain currently studying in the UK, grabbed the judge’s attention with her bright, fun design that has real personality. 

She created a ‘cat character’ that would really grab people’s attention in-store and on the shelf. The resulting clean design with its striking colors and execution speaks for itself. 

Ines said: “In this project it was clear from the beginning that I wanted to do something fun, colourful and eye-catching. Basically, taking this opportunity to have fun, be creative, and create something that I love visually and graphically.”

Winner: Sebastian Ricardo

Sebastian was inspired to make a hero of the material itself. He used aluminium as the central element of his design, creating an impactful sanitiser bottle with a thoroughly premium feel. 

The design allows the stylish, brushed aluminium to shine through the central area for maximum impact. 

The judges were impressed that Sebastian’s design highlighted that the product protects both the body and the environment, and accurately reflected the high quality of Trivium’s premium packaging. 

“I sought to design a product with a real and commercial appearance, but that at the same time has a story behind it that transmits important ideas and values. I did not focus only on the visual or functional.”

Entries were meticulously reviewed and assessed by a panel of Trivium experts, working alongside two special guest judges: Andrew Gibbs, founder of Dieline, the world’s most visited packaging design website; and Debrah Smith, Creative Director of packaging design visionaries Smith&+Village. 

In addition to having their final designs featured on Trivium’s site, the three budding designers received a consultation with internationally acclaimed creative agency, This is Embrace, to refine designs and receive real, on-the-job training. 

“We were really impressed with the originality of the competition winners’ designs, and the thought behind them” says Simon Davies, MD of This is Embrace. 

“We enjoyed walking them through the process of turning an idea into a finished product and sharing our experience in branding and design. These next-generation creatives definitely have the talent to succeed.” 

“It was great to see budding designers from across the world unleash their creativity on the blank canvas of our packaging,” says Ann Halvorsen, VP of Communications for Trivium Packaging. 

“The winners’ design expression showcases the aesthetic possibilities of metal packaging. From full coverage to utilising the raw beauty of the canvas within a design, the finished products have excellent aesthetic appeal. 

“With this competition, we aim to inspire the next generation of designers and brands to consider the possibilities of metal packaging, which is infinitely recyclable.”