Julien de Beaumarchais de Rothschild on the historic winemaker's pioneering collaborations with eminent artists.

Renowned for being among the most expensive wines in the world, the vintages of Château Mouton Rothschild, a Premier Cru Classé de Pauillac, have featured a different contemporary artist each year since 1945. Since 2013, the collected works have been visible as part of the winemaker's Paintings for the Labels exhibition, which comprises the original works by the likes of Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Francis Bacon, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Georges Braque, Antoni Tàpies, Balthus, Jeff Koons and even the Prince of Wales.

What is the origin of the first artistic work on a Mouton Rothschild label?

My grandfather, Baron Philippe de Rothschild, thought of the idea in 1926, for the 1924 vintage. As the new owner of the estate, his ambition was to bottle the entire wine harvest at the château. This was a huge innovation at a time when the majority of the vine production was bought and bottled by the Bordeaux trade. My grandfather decided to become independent, and further did so by adding his personal touch to the wine label: an artistic work by poster designer Jean Carlu.

Would you say it was a revolutionary decision for the time?

Indeed! Combining art and wine on a bottle, a consumer product, had never been done before. Carlu, this avant-garde artist, completely embraced the cubist movement of his time to create a unique work of commercial art. Unlike the subsequent labels of Mouton Rothchild vintages, which distinctly separate the artistic and the technical space of the label, this first label is unique as it integrates all its descriptive aspects within, and is therefore a complete and wholesome piece of art.

What are your selection criteria for a label artist?

The artist must be internationally known. However, it is not because the artist is famous that we choose them. They must speak to our artistic sensibilities, and not be subversive or polemical. This last point is extremely important – on the one hand, because our family does not appreciate creating controversies. On the other hand, Mouton is a marketed wine, which means we are subject to certain constraints. We like to choose artists who carry a unique perspective on the world and express fantasy through art.

Interestingly, the Prince of Wales illustrated the 2004 vintage.

The Prince of Wales is a talented painter. While the label is customarily dedicated to the vine and wine, it sometimes celebrates a historical event. The year 2004 marked the centenary of the Entente Cordiale between Great Britain and France. It was in this spirit that Baroness Philippine de Rothschild approached the Prince of Wales to illustrate the label for the 2004 vintage with one of his watercolours: Mediterranean Pines on Cap d'Antibes. The label is particularly unique, as the Prince of Wales gave us the honour of adding the following handwritten note to his piece: "To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Entente Cordiale – Charles, 2004".

Are there any technical constraints for the artist?

We believe artists should have complete creative freedom; therefore, we don't impose any size restrictions for those who collaborate. The works can be gigantic, like Karel Appel's, or tiny, like Hans Hartung's. Every year, the artists take possession of the space and take hold of it in their own way.

The medium and format of the original works can vary quite a bit...

The artists who illustrate the labels are not only painters; they are also sculptors such as Bernar Venet or scenographers such as Robert Wilson. We love the diversity of these artists and their media. I was delighted when David Hockney created his work on an iPad.