Since 2006, Ornellaia’s Vendemmia d’Artista has paired each vintage with a contemporary artist who interprets the wine’s personality through visual art. Now in its 17th edition, the project continues with the 2022 release—La Determinazione—brought to life by Cameroonian artist Pascale Marthine Tayou, whose global practice is rooted in materiality, color, and an infectious sense of vitality.
This year’s theme, “determination,” finds shape in a vivid suite of label designs and sculptures that reflect both the character of the vintage and Tayou’s expansive artistic vocabulary. “I came across a plant that had grown from a stone and still managed to flower,” he explains. “It became a symbol for what I wanted to express—courage, commitment, resilience.” For Tayou, wine itself becomes part of that story: a force that brings people together, shaping shared purpose from individual paths.
Each bottle is treated as a distinct artistic medium. The 750ml label pulses with concentric rings of color, symbolizing unity and collective energy. Double Magnums feature a photograph sequence showing a plant breaking through cracked desert earth—each one unique. The 10 Imperials (6L) and single Salmanazar (9L) arrive encased in tactile sculptures: boldly colored patchworks made from reclaimed textiles, hand-stitched in rhythmic repetition. “I was in a determined mental state,” Tayou says, “and I used materials that demanded the same focus and poetry I found in the wine.”
“It moved me to see how he interpreted this vintage. His art expresses how resilience and joy can—and must—coexist.”
Lamberto Frescobaldi, president of Ornellaia
The 2022 vintage was shaped by extremes: record dryness early in the season and intense heat through summer, followed by late-season rains that helped restore balance. The resulting wine is bold, linear, and unexpectedly fresh, thanks in part to a higher-than-usual proportion of Petit Verdot. “It’s a wine of precision and energy,” says technical director Marco Balsimelli. “The challenges of the vintage helped reveal new facets of the estate’s personality.”
To support Vendemmia d’Artista’s ongoing philanthropic mission, Ornellaia has pledged all net proceeds from the auction to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. The funds will support conservation and research tied to the upcoming Collection in Focus: Modern European Currents, opening at the Guggenheim New York on July 15.
Photos courtesy of Ornellaia