Musical Posters

A band called Dry The River have these cool posters which are up in East London, they are on the back of the 3D Horse posters (below) done for the band last year. You can listen to a track through the tin can phones.
They are up from today.
Thanks to it's nice that.

Carole Lambert

Bruce from Carole Lambert came in to see us here at Albion with some interesting books for the creatives and producers to have a look through.
Always great to see Jean Yves Lemoigne's book, lovely work for Axe (BBH London):

Also always good to see work from Korner Union:

Happy New Year!

Sorry I have been a bit slack at posting the last couple of months. I'll do better this year.

Beyond the Atrium - Guest post by Tony Dell

Today I stood in front of one of the most famous illustrations in the world.  A meeting of western perspective and Japanese tradition.  I talk of The Wave that wonderful coloured woodcut by Hokusai which was drawnig about 1830 and which has captured the imagination of east and west. The British Museum has made a great deal of fuss about The Wave and has built a small exhibition around this one picture and it is absorbing.   

There is also an exhibition of Japanese manga which is their word for comics.  There are drawings by Hushimo Yakinoku for the comic character Professor Mujnakata and the edition of his mystery solving in The  British Museum.  A Japanese equivalent of Hercule Poirot!  The Professor is a very popular character in Japan and has appeared in a number of comics.  A book of the drawings is on sale at the Museum.

So much attention is paid to Grayhson Perry’s alter ego, the young girl with teddy bear, that it is possible to lose sight of the work for which he justifyably acclaimed in the creation of ceramics. While you are admiring The Wave you could visit the Grayson Perry ehibition of the pottery of unknown potters throughout time.

It is typical that he is exhibiting his collection of the work of othes and not his own. I don’t know if you saw it, but there was a brilliant documentary about Grayson the other night and his motorcycle ride acfoss Europe to a town in Germany which is paired with his home town. His observations belie the image he derliberately creates and explain why he has been a winner of The Turner Prize.

Here are some of his pots.

And the changing face of Grayson Perry.

Initially when he is dressed as a little girl with his friend Alan the teddy bear it is disconcerting but his lack of embaassment changes the situation and when you hear hs explanation for his cross dresssing it is clear that he is right to act as he does.  The acceptance by his wife makes it all seem perfectly natural.

Tony Dell, the oldest man in Advertising in London*

I have the great honor of sitting next to Tony Dell, He is the oldest man working in Advertising here in London. My first week here back in September we celebrated his 91st birthday with cakes and tea.

Every week, sometimes several times a week, Tony sends us an email about his artistic adventures (he is Head of Visual Inspiration here at DLKW Lowe) which are always interesting because as you can imagine, he knows a hell of a lot about art.

Tony has always been an artbuyer since the 1950's, he still sits within the creative services department here inspiring the whole agency. I think this is prertty damn amazing.
Here is a piece he wrote on why the future of advertising looks colourful.

With his permission I may add a few of his emails as posts to this blog.

* Don't know if this claim is true, but I like to think so.

New & Old

Last week Matt Barlow and Jessie came in from Germaine Walker to show us some books and a new signing. It was just before lunch and they were showing us some of Matt's gorgeous food shots which we were salivating over. Here's one of Matt's shots, chip butty...hmmmmm

New Audi ad

Saw this Audi Q3 in GQ on the weekend while my wife was in Coast looking at dresses for her sisters wedding (amazingly Coast have a 'bored husband/boyfriend chair' AND magazines!)
I am not sure who did the type for this, but if you know, let me know.

Update: Philippe Wilson tells me it was Alison Carmichael

Ginger Joe massive moustache in Hoxton

This massive moustache in Hoxton is a special build for Ginger Joe alcoholic ginger beer, and do I love ginger beer! You can go to https://www.facebook.com/gingerjoeukand upload a pic of yourself with a big fat ginger moustache.

Higher Pitch

Last night I was invited by a friend of mine who works at Society46 to go to the Higher Pitch exhibition.
It is an exhibition of work created by people who work in Advertising around the world. Initially this was a women in advertising event but this year they opened it up to everyone. There was some really interesting stuff there, I particularly liked the 'Meh Cat' by Tim Cordell.I wanted to buy it but am low on funds this month. Sponsored by Absolut, there were three cocktails to choose from, unfortunately I had to ride my vespa as I had to get from west London to east, so I could not drink.

New Castle Brown Ale - Shadow billboard

Really very cool. This was placed in San Diego's night life hub, the Gaslamp district.
Ellis Gallagher and Pablo Power created this.

Propaganda Posters

I just found these propaganda posters by Justonescarf.

Doggelganger

This great site from Colenso BBDO in New Zealand, its been around for a few months I think. Upload an image of yourself (or take one with your webcam) and the Doggelganger site will scan the database of abandoned dogs and based on your facial features, and comes back with a match. Goes with the old saying that dogs look like their owners. Client: Pedigree.

Dutch Football Federation T-shirts

Now this is COOL. A simple why-did-I-not-think-of-that idea.
Dutch Football Federation - 2010 FIFA World Cup T-shirt.
Advertising School: Willem de Kooning Academie, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Creatives: Bas van de Poel, Daan van Dam
Seen at thecoolhunter.co.uk

Web Design Basics

I thought I would do a post on the course I did last week at the University of Middlesex Summer School.

As we all do, I wanted to learn more about digital, and not just the social media stuff but the actual foundations of what is online. Way back when I was a spring chicken and first starting out I decided that the best way to understand and manage artwork was to learn how to do it, so I put myself on a Quark, Illustrator and Photoshop course. Now, my skills are very basic but at least I understand what needs to be done and how, makes my job easier. I figured it was the same for web.

On this course I learned how to code HTML and how CSS works. The course was just what I needed, the room was 50/50 split with young kids (twentysomethings) and older - the oldest bloke looked like he was in his sixties, good for him I thought!

The first two and a half days was pure HTML, headings, breaks, links etc, then we got onto CSS - all the while actually doing things, practicing. The last 2 days was spent learning more things - rollover banners, animated gifs, colours (or colors as the code was done by Americans), and buiding our websites. I am pleased to say I am still working on mine, I am not changing careers but I may well do it as a hobby, something to do on a rainy day to keep up my knowledge.

It is only run once a year and there is only one class so look out for next years, sign up.

USA Facebook/Passport figures

Interesting post on The Wall about hte number of Americans on Facebook compared with those with passports. Like the Jennifer Whitehead, I had heard the passport figure was around 5%. the figures are interesting.

GOAB - then end of TV? Or a new begining?

GOAB. A TV Experience Concept from Syzygy on Vimeo.

I heard about GOAB today, not quite sure what I think about it; it's exciting but also a little scary - 'What if... your remote control knows you? And your social network?'

Don't get me wrong, I love this stuff, I just worry about privacy. How much of me is in the internet? Can I control it?

'Interactive' Outdoor in Amsterdam

Artis babyboom from Dawn Amsterdam on Vimeo.

Dawn in Amsterdam have done this really sweet outdoor campaign for Artis - the Zoo in Amsterdam.
The posters are made up of stickers that can be removed like kids sticker books and placed all over the city. Watch the film.
It's a great display of how you can still have interactivity in 'traditional' media.

I saw this on Advertblog.

Natwest floor stickers at Marylebone Station

I noticed these Natwest floor stickers at Marylebone station this morning. I am usually on my scooter so I don't see stuff like this much.
It really grabbed my attention. It is often the most simple ideas that are most effective.
I was changing song on my iPhone and one of the stickers caight my eye and first glance I thought it was a real wallet, I then looked around to see all the other wallets/purses and cards on the floor and then the information block.
Good work whoever did it.

Toyota multi touch wall

Toyota Vision Multi-Touch Wall Case Study from JUXT Interactive on Vimeo.

This was at the North American International Auto Show this year, it's something else I have found on theFWA site, it's really a brilliant place to keep up with what you can do online and with digital technology.

Next week Cannes...

If your agency is anything like the one I am working in at the moment there will be a mass exodus of creatives from London to decend on Cannes Lions next week. I wonder if any agencies are treating their chosen ones like the Royal family and making them travel on separate planes?
Good luck to all the entrants, though to some I think it is more about thse sun and parties than the awards ceremony.

If you can't go to Cannes, go to Cannt

The D&AD's were on last night. I expect there are some sore heads today.

Pioneering Beering

Client: Hahn Super Dry Beer
Title: Pioneering Beering
Agency: Publicis Mojo, Sydney
Creative Director: Micah Walker
Art Director: Justine Armour, Ruth Bellotti

Contagious Magazine

I had a drink with a digital producer friend of mine earlier this week, we were chatting about the advertising world getting more digital, as we all well and truly know, and I asked (grilled) her to find out how we as project managers can learn more about what is happening now, what we can do to be pro-active in learning about new technologies as every digital project is slightly different and even experienced digital producers will come across something they have not done before - unlike print where most jobs are very similar, with digital just about every job is different.

She told me about two places.

One is The FWA. The Favorite Website Awards. They feature a 'site of the day' which is very highly regarded. It's a great place to start to go to for us to see what is possible and what is new with regards to website. The Kijjaa site I mentioned earlier in the week is one I saw on here. I'll continue to post about other sites I find on the site. You can also search by production companies and agencies so you can see who has done what.

The other is Contageous Magazine. They have a website but unfortunately you need to be as subscriber to see most of the content. With an annual rate - 985 GBP + Delivery (excl VAT) it is probably too steep to invest in, but ask around at your agency to see if they have copies of the magazine to look at.

This is what they say about themselves:
'Our quarterly magazine identifies the ideas, trends and innovations behind the world's most revolutionary marketing strategies. The accompanying DVD showcases over 60 pieces of high quality creative work sourced globally. Each campaign is presented in a 'challenge/solution/results' format, which analyses the effectiveness of these innovative marketing solutions'

Just passing on what I find out.

Kijjaa online game

Now this is cool. Click on this link, go to the site, download the app from the appstore (not a free app unfortunately) and then enter the code on the website screen into your iPhone.
Then you have a very simple but addictive video game which you control from your iPhone - shooting and moving, tilting the iPhone, swerving side to side...Amazing. No idea how this works technically but I am going to find out!

Transparent Solar Panels

I am working on a project for one of my clients at the moment and I came across this amazing product - Transparent solar panels, which are really no thicker than putting a piece of paper through one of those old laminating machines, AND it produces 20% more electricity than standard solar panels!

Obviously I cannot talk about the project but this product is very cool, the company is called Konarka, their European sales are based in Germany.

Marketing Week Live - 29-30 June 2011

It's back again.
To be honest last year I felt a bit lost there and found the 'In-Store' show to be mainly aimed at those who work in marketing departments of retail clients, but it was still interesting in seeing the new technologies on offer.

The Online Marketing again is probably more targeted to clients and not agencies but you really should keep up with new technologies. Register for your free entry.

It's on at Olympia again.