The Balvenie has announced a collaboration with New York-based contemporary artist Daniel Arsham to create a multi-part artistic programme linked to a forthcoming limited-edition whisky collection. The project, revealed on 12 May 2026 in New York, will include immersive events across Asia and the United States, with the first public unveiling due later this year.
The partnership is titled The Dawn of Our Spirit and centres on what the Scotch whisky maker calls its “Five Rare Crafts”: barley growing, cooperage, traditional floor malting, copper stills and the role of the malt master.
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The Balvenie said the collaboration will “unearth the spirit of The Balvenie” by exploring these production stages through Arsham’s artistic interpretation and a series of “sensorial and immersive experiences”.
Kelsey McKechnie, Malt Master at The Balvenie, said the work builds on longstanding methods at the distillery. “The Balvenie’s approach remains the same today as it always has been; it is a story of artistry, innovation and human endeavour,” she said.
McKechnie added: “We look forward to unveiling our collaboration to the world, later this year.”
Arsham said he had been drawn to the whisky maker’s traditional processes. “Learning of The Balvenie’s time-honoured skills and its dedication to the most traditional methods of making whisky is inspiring,” he said. “Our collaboration is rooted in a shared respect for both process and time.”
The Balvenie said the collection will include “an ultra-rare release and collectible limited editions”, with each whisky intended to embody the Five Rare Crafts and be “artistically interpreted” by Arsham. The company has not yet announced pricing, bottle sizes, release dates, or distribution details for the whiskies.
A central theme for the programme will be The Balvenie’s Home Floor Maltings, which the brand said began operating around 1931 and “remains largely unchanged to this day”. Floor malting is now uncommon across scotch whisky, with most producers using industrial maltings rather than malting on site, making it a point of distinction for the brand.
The Balvenie is part of William Grant & Sons, a family-owned Scotch whisky business founded in 1887. More information about the distillery and its range is available at the brand’s website: https://www.thebalvenie.com/.
