EXTRA COLD

ABSOLUTE WHAT?

True to form with these "anti-adverts" against absolute vodka, Adbuster's have turned the advertising message around via parody and satire.

IMAGINATIVE SHOPPING LIST

came across this when I was looking on ilovetypography.com. Just thought it was quite a neat idea, nicely executed. Some really inspirational work on there if you like your typography!

HEAD AND SHOULDERS TYPOGRAPHIC ADVERT

Saatchi NY

BEN FOLDS FIVE

Typographical video from album "Rockin' The Suburbs" in 2001

TYPOGRAPHY ARTWORK

ALISON CARMICHAEL

I blogged about her earlier when I came across some of her work, I have just taken a look at her website and there is some truly fantastic stuff on there. If your not familiar with her name you will definitely recognise some of her work ranging from press ads, poster ads, idents, book covers and moving image. Heres a few pieces of Alison's work, but you should take a look at her website.

DORSET CEREALS

Some more packaging that caught my eye, like the new Jordans range this looks more simplistic and luxurious with the types and colours used. 

WORDS LOOK SO MUCH NICER WHEN THEY'RE HAND LETTERED

Typographer Alison Carmichael created these posters as self promotional items for her work which she sent out to different agencies to promote herself, in doing so got recognised winning several awards and working on some great ads. This work is great, especially  the first one because it takes the viewer a while to realise what the word is. She is obviously very talented and not afraid to take a risk to stand out!

BBQ BUDWEISER

why?

NEW HOVIS AD

I loved this advert the first the I saw it! Similar to the original famous Hovis ads this advert features a young boy buying a loaf and clutching it under his arm whilst he runs home. As the boys runs, the scenes change so that he is running through 12 decades of British history. Filled with memories, a fantastic sense of history and heritage this ad brings Hovis bang-upto-date.Take a look....

THIS WATER

"Our drinks are simple. We source the best quality ingredients and blend them in the simplest way. No fuss."

I like the descriptions on this range of drinks which tell you exactly what is in it.....

This Water is made from;

• spring water
• half a pomegranate
• 17 blackcurrants
• sugar
• 3 crushed lychees
• a dash of lemon juice

Also the overall look of the bottle is fun and fresh.

"Recent work has involved rebranding Innocent's Juicy Water range – a product that owes more to water than fruit which consequently felt awkward under the innocent name. The new brand – This Water – focuses on the ubiquity and versatility of water, and features a hand-scribbled observation and image on each pack. Its fresh and charming personality clearly references Innocent but also has the strength and versatility to move forward as its very own brand." The Design Council.

COOL BRANDS

Portfolio of Britain's coolest brands.

JORDANS NEW MAKEOVER

The entire range of Jordan's muesli cereal has recently been completely redesigned and launched in the supermarkets. The rest of the Jordan collection will be redesigned this year. The new packaging has a much more modern appeal, the logo has also been simplified to give a more modern touch. The aim of the new branding is to "focus on taste and present a 'unified identity' following an expansion to the range". Heres the old packaging, so you can see that significant improvements have been made.

BARCLAYCARD NEW IDENT

The new logo is meant to project a global and modern image. The new ident will appear in different colours, but it is going to take at least 12 months to phase the old one out.
I think this ident looks much more confident and professional for a bank than the previous.

VITAMIN WATER.

Since being back in the UK I've noticed that vitamin water is slowly beginning to appear on the shelves of cafes and shops. This was a huge product in Australia, and the copywriting on the bottles entertained me immediately. The Glaceau products are designed to address people who are aware of the importance of their health, supported by their slogan "hydrate responsibly". There is a great sense of humour behind the copywriting which is perfect for the young audience that the vibrant packaging is aimed at. The names add to the appeal too, instead of boring flavour names "blackcurrant", each flavour has been given an imaginative name to enhance the personality of that flavour and support the copy.

The look of the product is simple and distinct, making the product not only look good on the shelf but stand out from its competition along side it. The website also promotes the products in a great way, each flavour again has a distinct look (colour) and an animated illustration similar to the "coke side of life" imagery I have blogged previously.

There is plenty of information, and the same amount of humour and good writing packed into each page. The UKs page is slightly different but the same tone of voice is used, and in my opinion is just as sucessful and witty. The whole campaign lends itself to creating a personality for each flavour making for a successful and fun piece of branding.

FLICKR RELATED TAG BROWSER

Flickr Related Tag Browser lets you surf Flickr's tag space. Like the labels on our blogs, the tags are the keywords used to describe an entry. This allows you to search keywords, and words related to your initial search. Easy to use and nicely designed layout. 

THINK NOW, DESIGN LATER

I bought this book last weekend, written by Pete Barry who worked at Ogilvy in London on advertising concepts- an area Im looking into for dissertation. Its a great book, "structured to provide a complete course on advertising and a quick reference on particular topics, the book covers every aspect of the business, from how to write copy and choose a typeface to how agencies work, to the different strategies used for print, TV, film, and interactive media". A great feature of the book is Barry's sketches of some of the best adverts of all time, in an attempt to recreate big ads and show how important the concept is to the final outcome. He states that "without  a great concept you have nothing but mutton dressed as lamb". The books core lesson is that a great idea will last forever. 

THE FACE OF DEFEAT

Here are some images from, Photographer Sandy Nicholson's latest book, 2nd.

Sandy decided to photograph the 'losers' from a range of contests and competitions rather than focusing on the glory of the winner, he took a closer look into getting 2nd place. Through the series of photographs one can see how important coming first is to people, the look of disbelief and 'if only' makes the viewer relate to how it feels being second best, not the best. Each of his subjects were photographed just after hearing the results or standing down from the '2' podium so you really get a sense of reality and disappointment. An interesting collection of work to look at.

MIGRATION

Migration is part of an exhibition that has taken place in two Capital cities over the past two months. In August, London based illustrator, Hellovan installed his drawings of abstracted birds outside of the Truman Brewery, Brick Lane in London. The flock of abstracted birds will then be moved to New York and installed on a billboard outside of the Espeis Gallery, leaving the impression that has work has literally migrated.

DESIGNER TRAINERS

Design Agency accept and proceed have designed illustrations for Nike. "Seduced by innovation" and "Recognise the original" were the concepts chosen by Nike. These designs will be used on the trainers, point of sale, and other marketing and promotional items.

GNARLS BARKLEY

The Gnarls Barkley site has had a make over by design agency Rokkan. They used saturated colours and quirky animations throughout to reflect the band's identity.

DIANE ARBUS

American photographer Arbus (1923-1971) was known for her portraits of people on the fringes of society. Her work is very raw, and sometimes quite controversial. She spoke of her work and said, "I really believe there are things which nobody would see unless I photographed them”. Alot of her work was focussed on transvestites, dwarfs, giants and prostitutes- showing an insight to the outcasts of society. Even her work with the working class "ordinary" people was posed and shot in unconventional places to capture an honest yet obscureness about them. She was captivated by all kinds of people.
As Arbus' work began to develop, a distinctive style became apparent. A big feature in most of Arbus' work was for the subject to be starring into the camera. Susan Sontang, who Arbus once photographed said "Arbus' brilliance was to catch everybody unmasked, at the moment of transition between unconscious repose and practiced, social self-representation. People seemed to reveal, in that moment, their essential being, which was alienated and miserable".
At the age of 48, Arbus committed suicide. A year later, MOMA held a retrospective of her work. It was the most popular solo photography exhibition in its history, and the monograph that followed, one of the best-selling art books in history.

HARD ROCK

HP CREATIVE

HP give you some ideas of how to "Put your Old Printer to Better Use" to promote their trade it in facility when you buy one of their new printers.

NEED A COFFEE?

Some nice playful ads for McDonald's Coffee.

ANDRE JORDAN

Andre Jordan's funny postcards, doodles and stories are all on his website.