“Initiatives like this are essential for the professional development of young emerging designers, as they provide us not only with recognition, but also with opportunities to grow and connect with other professionals in the industry”, Ana Tocino, award winner.
The Banco Sabadell Foundation and ANFACO-CECOPESCA have announced Ana Tocino as the winner of the 6th ANFACO & Banco Sabadell Foundation design award. This year the competition, which recognises excellence and creativity in the design of packaging for canned fish and seafood products, attracted 171 talented young contestants of various nationalities, all below 35 years of age.
The design created by Ana Tocino, a young graphic designer from Madrid who is just 22 years old, stood out due to its elegant and serene visual appeal. The panel of judges appreciated “the elegance and serenity of the design, brought to light by a clarity, transparency and luminosity that emphasise the composition’s power and balance, making it stand out from the competition. By way of a visual synecdoche, the design integrates images developed from illustrations with a photographic look, which explicitly highlights the quality of the product/content of the can, drawing the consumer towards an up-close taste experience. The graphic design language, showing fragments of the product as if they were works of art in a museum, gives the product a subliminal feel of quality and exclusivity. The clean lines and balance of the layout are reflected in the orderly treatment of the graphic elements, the successful use of image and typography, which combine to create a formally balanced and visually exquisite composition”.
The design will be printed on the sleeves of cans used in the “Cata la Lata” campaign, which aims to encourage people to eat more canned fish and seafood, over the coming year. In addition to the winner, 9 other finalists were selected and have been included, together with the award-winning design, in a digital catalogue which can be found on the following link.
A competition that promotes young talent
Since the call for applications opened on 15 February and until its closure on 1 April 2024, the competition offered a platform for young designers to display their talent and contribute to the exciting development of the canned food market with their innovative designs. In this sixth edition of the award, the breadth and diversity of creative talent became evident, consolidating the competition as a key event in the promotion and recognition of new talent in Spain’s packaging design sector.
The panel of judges of the 6th ANFACO & Banco Sabadell Foundation design award comprised a selection of outstanding professionals from the graphic design, audio-visual and artistic fields, who brought their wealth of experience and knowledge to the table to judge the competition entries: Miquel Molins, Chairman of the EINA Foundation and founding partner of the Barcelona Arts College (chair of the panel); Roberto Alonso, Secretary General of ANFACO-CECOPESCA (deputy chair of the panel); Roman Pereiro, Director of the CANAL UNO agency and associate professor of audiovisual communication and advertising at the University of Vigo; Ana Soler, multi-disciplinary artist, teacher and researcher at the Fine Art faculty of the Pontevedra Campus at Vigo University, where she is also director of “dx5, digital & graphic art research”; and Emilio Gil, graphic designer and founder of Tau Diseño (1980).
The award ceremony was attended by diverse representatives from the arts, advertising, politics and business. Those participating in the ceremony included the Mayor of Vigo, Abel Caballero; Director General for Fisheries, Aquaculture and Technological Innovation, Antonio Basanta; Territorial Director of the Xunta de Galicia in Vigo, Ana Ortiz; Director General of SabadellGallego, Pablo Junceda; Chairman of ANFACO-CECOPESCA, Iván Alonso-Jáudenes, and Secretary General of ANFACO-CECOPESCA, Roberto Alonso.
“My design is based on an idea that occurred to me quite organically while I was working on other projects. I was choosing a Pantone for a colour palette and suddenly I thought to myself: if there is a Pantone system for colours, then why shouldn’t there be one for canned food products?”
Meet Ana Tocino, competition winner
Ana Tocino Castaño (born Madrid, 2002) is a young graphic designer from Madrid, where she completed her studies earlier this year in Multimedia and Graphic Design at the University of Design Innovation and Technology (UDIT). Currently living in her hometown, Ana has completed her degree demonstrating solid formal training and an unmistakable passion for visual arts. Over the last two years, she has enriched her training through internships in various companies, where she has worked as a graphic and visual designer. This hands-on experience has been key to the development of her creative and technical skills, giving her opportunities to tackle real challenges and contribute to significant projects in the field of design.
What does it mean to you to receive this ANFACO & Banco Sabadell Foundation design award?
Receiving the ANFACO & Banco Sabadell Foundation design award is a huge honour and a source of great personal satisfaction. It is a recognition of the effort and dedication that I have put into my work. This award not only represents an achievement in my career as a designer, but also motivates me to continue innovating and developing new projects.
What is your opinion of the support and visibility given to young talent by organisations such as ANFACO and Banco Sabadell Foundation?
The support and visibility provided for young talent by organisations such as ANFACO and Banco Sabadell Foundation is something that I personally value enormously. Initiatives like this are essential for the professional development of young emerging designers, as they provide us not only with recognition, but also with opportunities to grow and connect with other professionals in the industry.
Can you tell us a little about your winning design and what inspired you to create it?
My design is based on an idea that occurred to me quite organically while I was working on other projects. I was choosing a Pantone for a colour palette and suddenly I thought to myself: if there is a Pantone system for colours, then why shouldn’t there be one for canned food products? This idea led me to develop a colour system and visual aesthetic similar to the Pantone system with which products can be identified in a visually appealing way.
