The Core77 Design Awards Packaging category includes all graphic design, branding and structural designs related to the packaging of products. Examples include: primary or secondary packaging for Fast Moving Consumer Goods or premium brands, promotional packaging and gifting programs, limited editions, etc.

"A cute but harmless design is an invisible design, and it's pointless."

That provocative take sums up Davide Mosconi's approach to design.

Davide Mosconi, Creative Partner at Auge Design

A designer and art director with more than two decades of experience in communication and design, Davide is a co-founder and Creative Partner at Auge Design. The acclaimed Italian agency specializes in packaging and branding, with offices in Milan and Florence. Since its founding in 2016, the firm has become the most globally recognized Italian packaging design agency, garnering honors including Cannes Lions, Clio Awards, D&AD, Pentawards, and more. Earlier in his career, Davide spent 7 years as working with international brands as an art director at McCann-Erickson, then in 2011 became a co-founder and Creative Director of Apart Collective, serving international museum institutions and fashion brands.

Identity and Packaging for The Perfect Pop gourmet popcorn company. Design by Auge Design.

Davide enjoys seeing people interact with the packaging he has helped create, whether "an older lady at the store or a curious child at a café… In a world where social media images come and go in a flash, I'm genuinely fascinated by how people engage with design in the real world," he said.

That "flash" is something he finds troubling, lamenting "how quickly images… become old news. There's just so much [stuff] bombarding us every day, and trends come and go like lightning. It feels like there's no time anymore for a design to become truly iconic." A major challenge for designers is creating something that lasts, compounded by the interference of AI. As Davide said of this growing phenomenon, "It's like everything can be created without really creating it."

To make a mark in this design landscape, Davide's prescription for designers is to be bold. "To me it's better to have an idea that might seem wrong, with a bold and maybe even annoying look, than to have a correct idea that's too correct and ends up being boring. Courage is the key to breaking conventions, and a designer should always try to grab attention, shift perspectives, and spark discussion. It's essential to put that touch of magic, that insane air, into your designs."

The 2023 winner of the Core77 Design Awards in the Packaging category was LAYER for its Earth Rated rebrand, with a focus on sustainable packaging and products for dog owners.

If you've got a bold design project, summon your courage and enter it in the Core77 Design Awards today!