A zesty lemon scented, scratch-and-sniff design for Computer Arts' New Talent issue took the D&AD New Blood honours.
Last month, Computer Arts teamed up with D&AD New Blood to provide a unique opportunity to design the cover for our upcoming New Talent special – on sale 24 July.
We recently revealed the final shortlist of 10 – and are now delighted to announce our winner: Falmouth graduate Paddy O'Hara, with his strikingly simple but effective design that uses a glass of lemonade, surrounded by lemons, to represent how exceptional new talent stands out from the crowd.
Paddy O'Hara's winning entry puts a glass of sweet lemonade in a sea of bitter lemons
O'Hara suggested die-cutting the lemons with a yellow page beneath, but after some discussion the idea developed into a screenprinted lemon zest 'fragrance burst', applied by our finishing partner Celloglas – giving the New Talent issue a refreshing citrus twist.
Paddy O'Hara's finished cover in the flesh, complete with zesty fragrance
As Celloglas marketing director Steve Middleton explains, the concentrated lemon zest fragrance is mixed one-part-to-five with varnish, and then screenprinted onto the covers.
Tiny microbes of fragrance are released into the air when you rub the area, for a zesty lemon-fresh scent.
Runner-up prize
We were hugely impressed with the calibre of entries to our cover design contest, and hot on the heels of Paddy O'Hara was the very talented Marija Tiurina, whose skilfully rendered illustration of a young designer hatching from an egg immediately caught our eye.
Marija Tiurina's design features a young designer hatching from an egg
It was a close call for the overall winner, with both designs demonstrating very different strengths. O'Hara's smart concept had strong newsstand impact, and could be taken to the next level with a print treatment; Tiurina's illustration style couldn't be more different, trading flat vector shapes for intricate detail – and instantly communicating this topic.
So... we commissioned Tiurina too. And you can see her final design adorning the opening spread of the New Talent issue's Special Report, an in-depth round-up of the very best graduates from 2014's degree show season.
Marija Tiurina's illustration used as the opener of the New Talent issue's Special Report
The New Talent issue, featuring both Paddy O'Hara's zesty lemon-scented cover and Marija Tiurina's beautiful feature opener, is on sale 24 July – two more reasons not to miss it.
Nick has worked with world-class agencies including Wolff Olins, Taxi Studio and Vault49 on brand storytelling, tone of voice and verbal strategy for global brands such as Virgin, TikTok, and Bite Back 2030. Nick launched the Brand Impact Awards in 2013 while editor of Computer Arts, and remains chair of judges. He's written for Creative Bloq on design and branding matters since the site's launch.
