Access to quality drinking water is essential for well-being. Located in the heart of the Alps, Sion enjoys an exceptional water supply, both in terms of quantity and quality. However, climate change, industrialisation and increasing urbanisation are threatening our springs and water tables. Sustainable management of this precious resource is therefore crucial. Sion has therefore drawn up a long-term strategy for water use. Sion is the first municipality in the Valais to formalise such a strategy, and it is aimed at the general public.
The trend towards more responsible consumption is reflected in the Eau de Sion reusable glass carafe. By adopting this carafe, you are supporting sustainable development while enjoying quality water. Designed to reduce waste, the standard Eau de Sion decanter saves around 500 PET bottles a year – an economical and responsible gesture.
A Carafe as a canvas for local artists
The Sion carafe, La Moonea 75cl, has been a collector’s item since 2014. Each year, a new collection decanter is created, marking a decade of unique creations. Each year, Eau de Sion gives a local artist carte blanche to dress each limited edition, transforming the decanter into a work of art.
The silk-screen printing method, a meticulous and delicate technique, is used to sublimate the glass water bottle. With this technique, detailed, high-quality motifs can be applied, creating an aesthetic and lasting result that highlights the artist’s work with remarkable precision.
10 years of Eau de Sion
Edition 2014
Valais artist Catherine Cachin initiated this collection in 2014 and continues to play an active part in the selection committee.
Her decanter is full of vitality, inviting us to dance and enjoy joyful encounters. Almost human-like bottles intertwine, while the old H20 logo proudly adorns the decanter.
Edition 2015
Robert Hofer, a photographer since 1983, has been exploring the aesthetics of plants since 2005. Enthralled by the idea of decorating the decanter, he immediately thought of depicting a plant, a symbol of fertility linked to water, the source of life.
Fascinated by the beauty and harmony of plants, he emphasises the fragility of the plant, which finds a second life thanks to its image engraved on the decanter, bathed in water.
Edition 2016
Laurent Possa, a painter, sculptor and performer from the Valais, was chosen to create the 2016 collection decanter. He anchored it in the symbols of Sion, in particular the Chapelle de Tous-les-Saints.
He opted for a primitive figuration, recalling our origins, with this poetic reflection:
‘The drop falls, the heart rises. A tear of joy, the weapon of peace… and the heart rises!’
Edition 2017
In 2017, the collection took a new direction with a project open to primary school pupils in Sion. Eleven teachers worked with their classes, producing 280 projects. The drawing by Leonesa Aljievic, a 5H pupil, was selected.
This initiative brought new energy, raising awareness of the importance of water through the eyes of children. Here are some of their thoughts:
‘It’s transparent, it’s fresh, it’s delicious.’ – Selma
‘Thanks to you, we live. Without you, everything withers away. – Dijle
‘When it rains, I dream of drinking a rainbow. – Tyrese
Edition 2018
Saëlle Knupfer, a Valais craftswoman, is passionate about female faces and ethnic costumes, which she draws on paper. This is the inspiration for the Collection decanter.
She associates water with a woman: ‘A woman like a drop of water that changes position when the decanter turns over’. Her work aims to raise awareness of the importance of water: ‘Water is precious, it’s gold everywhere in the world’.
Edizione 2019
L’Eau de Sion ha commissionato alla Scuola vallesana di design e arte la creazione del decanter della collezione 2019. Sotto la direzione di Jérôme Gallay, hanno partecipato una trentina di studenti ed è stata scelta Camille Graf.
Nel suo progetto ha collegato l’acqua di montagna e l’energia urbana di Sion, facendo riferimento ai diversi stati dell’acqua e ai simboli del Vallese. Ci ricorda che, sebbene l’acqua sia una risorsa preziosa, la sua disponibilità nel Vallese ci fa talvolta dimenticare il suo valore.
Edition 2020
Ambroise Héritier, a cartoonist and illustrator trained in Brussels, has now settled in Valais, where he is working on a range of projects. For the carafe, he wanted to represent the life of the city in all its diversity and movement.
He compares the crowd to a shoal of fish, moving forward together with their dreams and ideas. The decanter is 60% covered in these individual destinies, reminding us that we are 60% water, a symbol of vitality.
‘In the crowd, we look for each other, it’s me, it’s us, united in diversity.’
Edition 2021
For the first time, the illustration for the decanter collection has been created via a national call for projects, with a mural in Sion linked to the Art Valais project’s Water trail.
Polina Okean and Camil Hämmerli, artists from St Petersburg and Aarau, combine illustration, graffiti and typography in a unique style, combining detail and bright colours. Their work symbolises the contrast between the strength of the mountains and the urban energy of Sion, representing the flow of water, a vital source linking these two worlds.
Edition 2022
Nathalie Zuber, who trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Sion and in graphic design, incorporates travel into her creative process, while remaining committed to painting despite digital technology.
On the theme of ‘Trees, the lungs of the city’, she has designed a framework combining leaves, trees and drops of water, each element contributing to the balance of the whole. The colours symbolise the seasons, with gold evoking the light of autumn, subtly revealing the monuments of the City.
Edition 2023
At the heart of the Rhone plain, Sion wants to colour its future in green and blue, by transforming its city centre, currently mineral, to better integrate water and nature.
The city of tomorrow must be permeable, organic and inclusive, in order to improve quality of life and strengthen its resilience in the face of climate change and biodiversity loss. Water, a precious resource, deserves particular attention.
Léa Gillioz, a geographer and urban planner trained in Lausanne, specialises in ‘nature in the city’ and is now exploring graphic design at the École Dubois in Lausanne.
Edition 2024
The artist discovered the Fêtes du Rhône during her final year at Edhéa. What struck her was the desire to bring people together around the Rhône through festive, artistic and educational events, symbolising the union of regions and people.
To illustrate this coming together, a graphic design was created, incorporating elements representing the riverbanks and the Rhône, while evoking the interactions between people. The rounded shapes suggest the fluidity of the water and the bright colours underline the festive aspect of the event.
Loren Fournier, born in Sierre on 1 January 2002, has a degree in graphic design from EDHEA and works as an assistant in a chiropractic practice. She is also training to become a tattoo artist and works as a freelance graphic designer.
