Zdenek Rykr and his fascinating world of Orion candy packaging
The icon of Czech art and applied art Zdenek Rykr
He started as a student of archeology and also focused on kunsthistorie. He found himself in Expressionism, Cubism, Neo-Classicism and Surrealism. However, his marketing work is also very important, and can be called purely visionary, timeless, and entertaining even though a lot of time has passed.
The genius of marketing design in Czechoslovakia
Already during his youth he succumbed to the spell of promotional materials, packaging material. He left his imprint with his posters for one of the biggest chocolate factories, Orion. For this he was called by his generation the "black conscience of the avant-garde." He is considered a marketing design genius. Zdenek lived between 1900 and 1940.
Zdenek Rykr as the inventor of the Orion star and the Moor with the coffee
Yes, this immortal symbol is still associated with the chocolate maker Orion. You don't even need to see the name of the chocolate, the luxurious four-pointed star formed by stringed lines is sufficient, and you already know what it is about.
Or the famous Moor that became the symbol of the luxury Kofila bar with its specific combination of coffee and chocolate, guaranteeing a refined taste experience. The image of a the coffee-drinking figure is most commonly referred to as the Turk, the Moor, or simply Kofiláček. The trademark for Kofila was registered as early as 1923.
The graphic design of Kofila has undergone a number of changes. From color changes to the Moor's clothes, be it the color of his turban, his tie, his trousers, his tongue, or his open mouth, to the cup with rising steam. Interestingly, one of Rykr's first suggestions reveals the "The pleasure of ladies and girls", which determined who the Kofila market was aiming at at that time.
Such artists should be pampered. Zdenek Rykr will remain forever our national jewel!
