Archie Rose x Horisumi

Creative Agency: Squad Ink
Artwork Horisumi: Kian Forreal
Photography: Nikki To & Lucas Peng
Project Type: Produced, Commercial Work
Client: Archie Rose
Location: Sydney, Australia
Packaging Contents: Gin
Packaging Substrate / Materials: Paper, Silk
Printing Process: Digital and Gold Foil

Introducing the Archie Rose X Horisumi limited release rare gin series, a collaboration between Archie Rose Distilling Co. and acclaimed tattoo artist Horisumi, which celebrates the four Japanese seasons.

The first in the series, Autumn, tells the story of the Kiku flower and the autumn gift of the fallen maple leaf. Meanwhile, the strong Koi fish makes its way upstream to evolve into the form of a mystical dragon, all captured in Horisumi’s Irezumi tattoo style.

Squad Ink worked with both the artist himself and the Sydney-based distillery to create packaging that was a true reflection of the individual crafts people who created this rare product and the partnership that formed this unique collaboration.

“We have a huge amount of respect for Horisumi (Kian Forreal) as an artist, so collaborating with such a talent was an inspiring experience.

The initial stages of the process were very organic; Kian would share his vision for the artworks, with sketches representative of Japanese mystical folklore and the changing seasons. Our job was to ensure that the artworks had strong impact on pack as well as clear differentiation between each season. This started off as looser composition sketches with colour references from Kian, which we would mockup and then adjust until we were all happy with the result. Then the final colour render process began, which was incredibly time consuming for Horisumi ¬– from start to finish this process alone took around 50 hours across all labels.”

On the liquid front, the team at Archie Rose have really stepped up the botanical line-up with a complex and savoury gin; red miso, sesame seed and sansho pepper all create a nutty, nuanced spirit that reflects the transitional tones of Autumn.

The first 200 lucky buyers received their bottle wrapped in a traditional Japanese Furoshiki style wrap. If you missed out, you’ll have to wait until the next release, Winter, so stay tuned – there’s a whole year of seasons to come.