It was a summer friendship that helped bring shape to La Cultivada.
I met my friend Laura when we were fourteen, at the place where we both used to spend our summer holidays.
We were introduced by a neighbour; my mother had encouraged me to go out with her instead of staying cooped up in my room, reading for hours as was my wont.
You understand… that strange, in-between phase of adolescence when everything feels so strange.
Laura was a real live wire – restless, energetic, full of life and fun.
I was rather shy back then… but we hit it off right away and quickly became inseparable.
Over the years, Laura became an incredible art director. And together, in her studio in Seville’s Arenal quarter, we began working on what would become the very first labels for La Cultivada, and our very first screen-printed tin.
We chose my favorite colour: that soft blue-green-aqua shade that would later become so trendy.
For aesthetic inspiration (a moodboard in today’s jargon), we turned to the old apothecary jars we remembered from childhood, botanical prints and antique engravings of landscapes and animals which my mother adored…
We had already had a name and beautiful pen-and-ink illustrations drawn by Pedro.
And then there was the can! Our first container wasn’t a bottle but a tin can – a bold and unconventional choice for the time!
Nothing similar to that shade, those pastel colours, existed in the world of olive oil, let alone on a can…
In fact, when we did our first survey, people weren’t exactly enthusiastic. But we didn’t let that stop us – we kept going, took a leap of faith, and went full Thelma & Louise.
And that’s how our first screen-printed can was born, the one that became the inspiration for all that followed…
Elena Vecino
Other publications
