The Embodiment of Popular Art in Wine Bottle Labels

What is popular art? One widespread conception of popular art is paintings, and Pablo Picasso, Leonardo da Vinci, and Vincent van Gogh have captivated popular culture for centuries. Another widespread conception involves musicians, and Kendrick Lamar, Usher, and Mozart all have concocted significant musical creations for their respective audiences to enjoy. However, according to the Merriam Webster dictionary, art is “something created with imagination and skill,” while popular, according to Dictionary.com is “of or expressing values related to the common people,” Thus, popular art is created with imagination and skill and expresses values related to the common people, and by definition, many ordinary objects not normally considered art are special works of craftsmanship. One such object is the wine bottle and its label. While many people often see them as just “containers for transporting wine,” the reality is significant amounts of creativity and imagination go into creating them. Wine bottles and their labels should be considered popular art because they have evolved over time and demonstrate the principles of imagination, beauty, and relation to the common people.

By definition, since “popular art” expresses the values of the common people (which includes the creators), their tastes evolve over time and so must the crafts that surround them. The glass wine bottle first came about in the 1600s, with fat bottoms and short necks. Later, the wine bottle evolved, with the neck growing taller and the bottom slimming, and by the 1820s they started to resemble the modern shape. The wine label has also had an interesting history behind it. Early label designs in Europe were like small pieces of parchment wrapped around the bottle, with carvings identifying the region it came from. Once lithography was invented in 1798, wine labeling really took off as an art, as winemakers took the time to create the perfect label, utilizing colors and designs. In summation, as demonstrated in both cases, wine bottle and label designs have had to evolve to keep up with altering tastes, showcasing an important characteristic of popular art.

Glass wine bottles and their labels also express the principles of imagination, skill, and relation to the common population, qualifying them as “popular art.” Imagination is on full display, as today’s bottles vary in shape and design, depending on the region or the winemaker- many German bottles have elongated shapes, while those from other regions have shorter necks and bigger, longer bodies. Skill is also demonstrated with their detailed, intricate appearances- some are shaped like jewel tones, some are shaped like glass tombstones, and some are shaped like famous towers. And in particular, the label designers are exemplary at relating to certain segments of the human population. Lazarus Wines created a label in 100% braille to assist the blind, Gemma Warriner concocted one that changes the more empty the bottle gets, and the Tierra Earth wine is made out of 100% dirt on the outside, catering to the tastes of the environmentalists.

In summary, by demonstrating the values of imagination, skill, and connection to the common public, wine bottles and their labels have shown themselves to be objects of popular art and thus should be treated as such.