Tampax packaging redesign
Packaging redesign of Tampax period products, highly commended project by Creative Conscience Awards 2024. Taking inspiration from Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy as a link between the way some people experience periods and the packaging design itself. People experience periods in different ways, some are on birth control and rarely get them whilst others can suffer from Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD).
FURTHER EXPLANATION
The redesigns link the three parts of the Divine Comedy; Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso to the different stages of the menstrual cycle and the way people experience it, such as pain, shame and joy.
Inspired by Dante's Purgatorio. Dante has just travelled through hell and is ready to make his ascent towards heaven. Purgatory is the condition, process, or place of purification or temporary punishment. There are seven terraces of Purgatory, each one loosely tied to the seven deadly sins, but unlike in Inferno where you are being punished and tortured, here you atone for your sins.
During the 7th terrace Dante walks through flames, showing total disregard for his body. This links to the shame and stigma that surrounds periods. Due to social taboos and gender stereotypes that stigmatise menstruation as dirty, many people who menstruate experience shame.
Inspired by Dante's Inferno. Here Dante navigates the depths of hell, in order to make his way through the earth to the otherside, climb a mountain in the story of Purgatorio, and then make it to heaven, Paradiso. There are 9 circles of hell and in the 9th circle Dante meets Satan; a giant three-headed beast flapping his giant wings.
This also represents the pain and suffering that people face during their periods. Some people use the term 'hell week' to describe their periods, as this can be an extremely painful and distressing time where you can suffer from abdominal pain, headaches and mood swings among others.
Inspired by Dante's Paradiso. Dante has reached the peak of Purgatory and is about to ascend through the spheres of heaven, floating higher and higher towards paradise. The last phase is the Imperium where Dante sees the shape of a rose which represents all divine love, heaven exists inside this flower. He sees God, seeing three overlapping circles to represent the holy trinity. Circles are believed to be the perfect shape.
The rose is symbolic and has connotations of purity, innocence and love. There are links here to the end of the menstrual cycle, where people are rejoicing that they are free from suffering, they have finally made it to paradise.
