Stella Artois' 'The Artois Probability' computes odds on beer in old paintings — Cannes GP

Stella Artois has one of the oldest brand stories in the world: the Den Hoorn brewery opened in Leuven in 1366, Sebastian Artois bought it in 1708, and 'Stella' joined the name in 1926. The problem was that a 600-year history is hard for a modern drinker to feel. GUT Buenos Aires found a way to make it visible — by looking at the beer painted in European art.

The agency developed an algorithm that analysed classic paintings and scored each one on variables such as the year it was painted, its geographical location, the type of glass depicted and the colour of the liquid, cross-referencing them against Stella Artois' historical records. Each painting received a probability score: the chance that the beer in it was actually a Stella Artois. The resulting print ads and outdoor billboards labelled masterpieces with their 'Artois Probability', inviting art and beer enthusiasts to see the brand hiding in art history.

The idea worked because it was honest speculation rather than a claim: the campaign never said the masters drank Stella, only that there was a probability — a frame that made the heritage argument feel playful instead of pompous. The Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes partnership gave the data cultural weight, and the copy treated the whole exercise as a fun what-if.

Juries agreed: The Artois Probability took the Creative Data Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2023, won a Gold Clio in 2024, and now sits in the D&AD awards archive — proof that a heritage campaign can be data-driven, humorous and old-master-classic at the same time.