Architect Daniel Libeskind has created an angular bottle for the Richard Hennessy cognac, which is named after the founder of drinks brand Hennessy.
The Baccarat crystal bottle has an angular external shape surrounding a curved internal form reminiscent of a traditional cognac bottle. The design was created to evoke a sense of history and the future.
"I am inspired by the interplay of history and the future – a particular magic happens when the two come together," said Libeskind.
"The inspiration for the decanter came from the powerful emblem of Richard Hennessy and symbol of the future of the brand," he continued. "I wanted to honour the history while elevating it."
By combining the curved and angled forms Libeskind aimed to express the tradition of Hennessy, which was founded by Richard Hennessy in 1765, and give "a new energy and complexity to the liquid inside" the bottle.
"I started with the classic Hennessy bottle shape, but I wanted to push the boundary of the design," he explained. "We also wanted to create something strong to embody the legacy of Richard Hennessy."
"The result was to insert the soft curved shape within the crystalline form that echoes the spirit of Richard Hennessy," he continued.
"The juxtaposition of the organic curves with the bold geometric form of the silhouette gives a new energy and complexity to the liquid inside."
Libeskind is one of the world's best-known architects and has designed buildings all over the world, including the Jewish Museum Berlin and the masterplan for New York's World Trade Center site.
He likened the process of designing the bottle to that of designing a building.
"The design process began several years ago with the common goal of creating something spectacular and rare," he continues.
"It's quite organic, but it always starts with a spark of inspiration—an idea or a place or even a sense—and then expands into a flame of possibilities! The decanter was developed over many years — like a major city plan or cathedral.
Libeskind is the latest architect to design a bottle for Hennessy. Recently, Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry created a limited-edition bottle for the 150th anniversary of Hennessy's X.O cognac.