Ashwa Nova wins Bronze A' Design Award in culinary arts

Ashwa Nova, a 3D-crafted chocolate bar by Abhimanyu Goel and Aakanksha Jain, won a Bronze A' Design Award in the Food, Beverage and Culinary Arts Design category. The recognition spotlights how digital fabrication, cultural storytelling and artisanal chocolate-making are converging in edible design.

Why it matters: - Ashwa Nova shows how chocolate can move beyond confectionery and into cultural storytelling, design and collectible art. - The win points to growing interest in combining digital fabrication with artisanal food production. - The project also highlights a sustainability angle, with a process designed to reduce material waste while preserving handcrafted detail.

What happened: - The A' Design Award named Ashwa Nova a Bronze winner in the Food, Beverage and Culinary Arts Design category. - The project was created by Abhimanyu Goel and Aakanksha Jain. - The announcement was made June 23, 2026. - The award recognizes an edible art creation described as a 3D-crafted chocolate bar.

The details: - Ashwa Nova weighs 80 grams. - The design is inspired by a symbolic horse associated with strength and prosperity. - The bar uses a layered lattice geometry drawn from traditional Asian huawen motifs. - Precision 3D-printed flexible formworks helped produce high-relief, sharp-angled details. - The creators say the process solves what they call the Geometric Release Paradox, where brittle tempered chocolate would crack in rigid molds. - Hand-gilded surfaces emphasize the ornamentation. - Calibrated chocolate viscosity captures fine micro-details. - The geometry is designed to shape how the bar breaks, adding an interactive sensory element. - The project combines computational modeling, fabrication engineering, cultural narrative and artisanal chocolate-making. - Abhimanyu Goel led the computational modeling and fabrication engineering. - Aakanksha Jain guided the cultural narrative and chocolate-making process. - The pair are based in Singapore and co-founded Modesi Chocolates. - More information is available on the A' Design Award project page.

Between the lines: - The award signals that culinary design is being judged more like product design, with attention to structure, materials, sustainability and concept. - The project also reflects a broader push to use technology to enhance, rather than replace, craftsmanship. - For niche food studios, the recognition can help position edible objects as design work with cultural and commercial value.

What's next: - The recognition may help Modesi Designs and its founders pursue more experiments in bespoke culinary design. - The project could encourage further work at the intersection of heritage, additive manufacturing and confectionery. - The A' Design Award listing gives Ashwa Nova a public platform for future visibility and industry attention.