UK WINNER NETS PRIZE FOR ‘TALES OF THE SEA’ DESIGN COMPETITION

Bunnahabhain offers Fishermen’s Mission support line

Bunnahabhain Islay single malt Scotch whisky has announced the winner of its UK design competition in partnership with The Fishermen’s Mission, a charity which cares for the families of fishermen lost or injured at sea.

The announcement comes at the start of the most perilous time of the year for commercial fishing, which is commonly recognised as one of the most dangerous occupations in the world.

The Tales of the Sea challenge was set up to nurture emerging design talent while also raising funds to help The Fishermen’s Mission, the only charity which provides emergency support alongside practical and emotional care to help fishermen and their families.

Topping hundreds of entrants, winner Mathilda Holmqvist will see her label produced on a limited-release Bunnahabhain expression which will be launched during the Feis Ile 2014 in support of the charity, with a percentage of the proceeds donated to the Mission.

Over 13,000 men and women are employed in the UK’s toughest and most dangerous peacetime occupation – inshore and deep sea commercial fishing. They face fatal injury on a daily basis and are 115 times more likely to suffer a fatal accident than the rest of the nation’s workforce.

The competition, which launched in April, was open to amateur and professional designers who were asked to design a contemporary label based on the return of the brand’s iconic travelling Helmsman to the safety of Bunnahabhain Distillery.

Tales of the Sea drew a high calibre of entries from across the UK including submissions from Glasgow School of Art, Leeds College of Art and Edinburgh College of Art. The judging panel included:

• Alison Godfrey, Director of Fundraising, The Fishermen’s Mission
• Ann Cleeves, crime author
• Brian Ferguson, Arts Correspondent, The Scotsman / Scotland on Sunday
• Rob Alderson, Editor, It’s Nice That
• Michelle Lansdowne, Senior Brand Manager, Burn Stewart Distillers
• Kirstie McCallum, Global Brands Ambassador, Burn Stewart Distillers
• Zoe Patterson, Programme Director of Graphic Design and Director of Undergraduate, Design School, Edinburgh College of Art
• Malcom Stewart, Creative Director, Tayburn

Alison Godfrey , Director of Fundraising for the Fishermen’s Mission, said: “We are thrilled to be part of this project with Bunnahabhain. Their enthusiasm and commitment to helping promote and support our work has been wonderful. The image selected is an exceptional depiction of some of the realities of fishing; being exposed to the elements of the sea and the weather and the physical efforts still involved in being a fisherman are well represented.”

Fishing remains the most dangerous peacetime occupation in the UK. In the past week, for example, five fishermen were rescued from their sinking boat off the Cornwall coast in the early hours of the morning and taken to The Fishermen’s Mission Newlyn centre to be cared for; just a few days later, a fisherman lost his life in North Shields.

Alison continues: “As well as working with active fishermen, we also support retired fishermen and their families. This is a significant part of our work which is sometimes sad and often difficult, but absolutely vital. Our thanks go to our friends, such as those at Bunnahabhain, for their help.”

Winner, Mathilda Holmqvist, who grew up in rural Sweden, said: “I am fascinated by storytelling and love how images can help convey stories in a more personal way. I am interested in the direct relationship that illustration has with the viewer, how an image can offer inspiration, comfort, joy or even an element of surprise and how it communicates an idea in a different way than words alone.”

Judge Michelle Lansdowne of Burn Stewart said: “After careful deliberation from the judges, the winning design was chosen for its atmospheric representation of the Helmsman returning home to the shelter of Bunnahabhain and the clear message it portrayed of the challenges faced by fishermen.

“Islay’s link with the fishing industry dates back centuries and we are thrilled to be able to support The Fishermen’s Mission. To drive awareness of the project and encourage support for the charity we have asked Mathilda to attend the Islay Whisky Festival next year to talk through her design with the hundreds of international visitors that annually attend and to sign individual bottles, which will make this special edition even more exceptional.”

Mathilda recently visited Scotland to take part in the production of the label at Tayburn design studios in Edinburgh, followed by a trip to Islay to visit Bunnahabhain Distillery. The Tales of the Sea film can be viewed here http://youtu.be/RFLFQHZvpEE

Notes

About Bunnahabhain: The multi-award winning Bunnahabhain is the flagship malt whisky from Burn Stewart Distillers and is exported to over 30 countries globally. Unlike its neighbouring distilleries on the Island, Bunnahabhain embodies “the gentle taste of Islay”, as it is the only non-peated Islay malt. Situated on the northern shore of Islay, Distillery Bunnahabhain was founded in 1881 by William Robertson and brothers James and William Greenless. Bunnahabhain is Gaelic for ‘mouth of the river’ and the distillery is situated right at the shoreline, close to where the Margadale River flows into Bunnahabhain Bay.

www.bunnahabhain.com

About Fishermen’s Mission

The Fishermen’s Mission is a national UK charity founded in 1881 to support Fishermen and their families. We are the only fishermen’s charity that provides emergency support alongside practical and emotional care. We help all fishermen, active or retired, and their families. We do this by:

• Offering immediate assistance, day or night, to the families of fishermen who have been killed or seriously injured
• Looking after the survivors of fishing boat accidents• Helping injured or ill fishermen to find medical help• Finding emergency housing and food if necessary
• Supporting fishermen’s families in the case of illness, distress or financial difficulties•
• Alleviating loneliness by visiting retired fishermen and their families at home or in hospital
• Offering welfare and support to overseas fishermen, working in the UK fishing industry, especially those who have to live on board boats• Providing Christian pastoral and practical help, including problems with debt, sickness, bereavement, family difficulties, debt and addiction problems.
• In 2012, The Fishermen’s Mission met with 3,300 fishermen, conducted 233 funerals, helped 1,748 fisherfolk access grants totalling £896,866 and made 7,351 welfare visits.

The Fishermen’s Mission is a national charity registered in Scotland as SC039088 and England and Wales 232822.

Further details about the Fishermen’s Mission can be found at www.fishermensmission.org.uk