Here’s a sneak peek at Starbucks new Art Deco-inspired merch collaboration
Artist Mike Willcox pays tribute to the places where coffee is grown with Starbucks new drinkware collection, which will be available in U.S. Starbucks stores starting Aug. 26.
Most of the world’s coffee is sourced from “the Coffee Belt,” a geographic band that wraps around the center of the globe in three main regions – Latin America, Africa and Asia-Pacific. Artist Mike Willcox honors coffee’s origins with his new drinkware collection for Starbucks with rich designs infused with Art Deco influences.
“I wanted to use classic deco themes but make something that made sense for the collaboration,” Willcox said. “So, I thought to pay tribute to the places where the coffee is grown around the world and the movement from those places to you.”
Willcox created his first sketches in pen and ink on paper, wrapping them around the cups to make sure everything fit. “I always use traditional methods as the foundation,” he said. He uses digital for coloring or finishing projects that require digital files but tries to do as much of his art by hand as he can, he added.
Art Deco started in the 1910s but became popularized after an exhibition in 1925 in Paris. Its bold geometric shapes and luxurious color palettes would become synonymous with the Roaring Twenties, and its influences extended from cars and buildings, to artwork, furniture and sculpture.
“Personally, I like the idea of art with a foundation in being decorative, so the aim is to make things very beautiful,” said Willcox. “There was an extremely high level of craftsmanship to it. I do my best to learn as much as I can about all of the history and people and methods involved and keep it alive.”
Here is a look at his collection, available in U.S. Starbucks stores starting Aug. 26.
Antelope Motif
The 16-ounce Antelope Motif stainless steel tumbler features graceful antelope bounding across the African savannah as birds soar above.
Jungle Motif
The collection’s 24-ounce Jungle Motif plastic cold cup features wildlife from different parts of Asia in a rich palette of navy, rust and jade green.
Island Motif
Willcox’s 14-ounce Island Motif ceramic mug takes you on a voyage of discovery as an ancient ship sets sail from a South American paradise under an inky black sky full of stars that seem to almost twinkle.
