Iceland review - 2015, Page 14

12 ICELAND REVIEW
In André Úlfur Visage’s magical kingdom,
a multicolored wolf reigns over tame
sheep and sheepdogs, reindeer and polar
bears run wild, bats, owls and Arctic terns
rule the sky and penguins dive into waters
infested with sharks and octopuses.
“How does all this relate to chocolate?”
one might ask, and the answer is: it doesn’t.
“It works because chocolate has nothing to
do with animals,” André says of his design
for the packaging for Omnom, an Icelandic
brand of handcrafted chocolate—the only
Icelandic chocolate made from scratch,
from bean to bar. “The idea was that
they should have a parallel existence, com-
plement each other. It was always more,
more… full-on with colors. No rules.”
The team behind Omnom, established in
2013, is chocolate maker and chef Kjartan
Gíslason, chocolate maker and baker Karl
Viggó Vigfússon, managing director Óskar
Þórðarson and André—he and Kjartan have
been friends since 2004. “In 2012 Kjartan
phoned and told me that he was starting
this and wanted me to help with finding an
identity. The only thing he had decided was
the name, Omnom, which didn’t tell me
anything at the time.”
At the time, André was on vacation at his
farmhouse near Cape Town, South Africa—
from where he hails—with his Icelandic
husband, graphic designer and photogra-
pher Ragnar Visage. The couple run design
company The North South together. I
ask André whether he was on-board from
the start. “Who wouldn’t be?” he smiles.
So, inspired by the surrounding nature
and wildlife, André started sketching. “You
could say that the design comes from my
love for the natural world.”
André reveals that his original idea for
a logo was of two narwhals crossing tusks.
But then the wolf surfaced. “The guys
wanted the wolf,” he says. “Our farm is
called Wolf Trap, and when I started work-
ing on the designs, I was sketching wolves
to cover our bathroom window. Maybe it
comes from there?” Coincidentally—or so
he says—André’s chosen Icelandic middle
name, Úlfur, means ‘wolf’ too.
When the chocolate packaging is opened
up, mountains appear. “To me, that screams
Iceland,” André says. “It functions as a serv-
ing tray and can easily be closed again, like
a purse, to save the rest of the chocolate,” he
explains. “We also wanted it to be like a gift
wrapping to add to the chocolate, something
to bring along to dinner parties.”
Omnom has received a lot of positive
feedback, both for the chocolate and the
design. “We had an email from a guy in
Romania who collects chocolate wrappings
from all over the world—he asked us to
send all of them.” André adds that he’s now
designing posters, metal tins and other col-
lectables—his designs are taking on a life
of their own. “We’re creating a magical
world of Omnom. It’s important to us that it
remains imaginative.”
Omnom will soon be moving to the
Grandi harbor area in Reykjavík, where
they will open up a café and offer tours of
the chocolate factory. Meanwhile, André is
working on the design for a new bar with
beans from Tanzania. “It’s an open canvas.
I was thinking maybe a rhino… I’m just
having fun.” *
Handcrafted Icelandic chocolate Omnom attracts connoisseurs because of
its authentic taste—but no less for its creative packaging design.
DESIGN
BY EYGLÓ SVALA ARNARSDÓTTIR.
PHOTO BY PÁLL STEFÁNSSON.
WOLF TRAP
Photos by RAX; the boat is decorative.
‘INFRA/SUPRA’ by Finnbogi Pétursson.