Beautiful Bottles

Evian has tapped designer Paul Smith to create a collectable water bottle using his child-like inspirations.  The striped water bottle also has five different bottle caps in various hues.  Smith was not the first to design tres chic bottles for Evian.  Christian Lacroix and Jean Paul Gaultier have both designed for Evian.  For Gaultier's assignment, he also designed five bottles for the Haute Couture collection showing that a water bottle can be as elegant as jewelry.   I hope to see more designers pair up with Evian in the future because package design has never looked so beautiful.

Paul Smith

Christian Lacroix

 

Jean Paul Gaultier

Jean Paul Gaultier - Haute Couture Collection

Bank of America Leaves Footprints Behind

Heading into Chicago this weekend,  outdoor signage for the 2009 Bank of America Chicago Marathon caught my attention.  The campaign's images, runners formed from colored footprints, are accompanied with the individual's reasons for being at the race.  All over the Windy City the campaign has a presence, from murals to lamppost signage. From BBDO, New York, the campaign is part of a digital fundraising push for 123 charitable causes.  As one article states, the campaign "illustrates the theme that every participant and spectator who attends on race day directly contributes to the impact that the race leaves behind."  Great art direction for a great cause, I can dig it.

Music Video with Style

I caught this music video for Kid Cudi's new single, Make Her Say (I Poke Her Face) ft. Kanye West and Common, and immediately loved the visuals of it.  Director Nez Khammal created a horizontal split-screen that is reminiscent of a Mario Kart race rather than the normal vertical split.  It keeps the images fresh and flowing, ever so nicely.  My favorite scene is probably the opener, with the rooftop full of colorful balloons.  Check out the full video here, I insist.

Trident: A Little Piece of Happy

Trident's new campaign "A Little Piece of Happy" actually brought a smile to my face. Mission accomplished JWT, New York.  A simultaneous website contains all the commercials in addition to happy articles, pictures, music and even a coupon to make you happy.  My favorite spot is "Daisy."

BBC: Robin Hood Logo

I just started to watch Robin Hood from the BBC and thought the show's logo was well-crafted.  The typeface fits the simple forest life the character leads while including his signature: the arrow.

Mini Cooper: Minimalism

Love the visual and the concept of this commercial for the Mini Cooper.



Advertising Agency: Webguerillas GmbH, Munich, Germany
Creative Director: Colin Conrad
Project Manager: Moritz Capelle
Other additional credits: Jochen Hirschfeld

Mad Men: Season 2 DVD

I love the season two cover of the AMC's series, Mad Men. Simple, but an iconic image of the series.

Livestrong: #8

Maybe it's because I support the LIVESTRONG cause, but I immediately was attracted to, and understood this visual. I also like the vertical text and logo placement, upper right hand corner instead of the overused lower right hand corner. Kudos to Marmalade.

"Lance Armstrong was dealt one of life’s most difficult hands. He has managed to survive to ride for an incredible eighth Tour de France title. Win or lose, he’s already won just by being there. No matter what life throws at you. No matter what obstacles are in your path. No matter if the voices in your head are telling you that you can’t go on. Live every minute of your life with every ounce of your being. Unite and help us fight cancer. Because whatever you face, you can Livestrong."

Advertising Agency: Marmalade, Melbourne, Australia
Art Director: Tim Forte
Copywriter: Dan Forestal
Photographer: Chris von Menge
Retouching: Imagenation
Published: July 2009

Dos Equis: The Most Interesting Man in the World

I absolutely love the creative genius behind The Most Interesting Man in the World campaign for the imported beer brand, Dos Equis. Done by EuroRSCG, the commercials are accompanied by the company's excellent interactive website that includes The Most Interesting Academy. The noteworthy part of this campaign is that it has produced measurable sales growth. According a recent Ad Age article, "Through mid-June, a period when imported beer sales dropped 11%, sales of Dos Equis rose more than 17%, moving the brand into eighth place among imports (in a tie with Stella Artois), when shipments rose 13%, claims Advertising Week."

Some of my favorite liners describing the MIM:
"He once had an awkward moment just to see how it feels."
"His blood smells like cologne."
"Even his enemies list him as their emergency contact number."

Television Spots











In addition to the traditional 30 second television spots, the campaign also includes shorter advice spots from the MIM.





Couldn't forget the print ads.


And a radio spot.

The Secret Life of Logos & Gotham Books

While browsing at a bookstore yesterday, I came across an interesting book called The Secret Life of Logos by Leslie Cabarga. 75 designers contributed their opinions and experiences with logo creation. My favorite part is the sketches and logo variations of each identity, showing the evolution of the logo. One of my favorite identities is for Gotham Books, an imprint of publishing giant Penguin Group. According to the design firm responsible for the piece, Eric Baker Design Associates, "the logo both captures New York City, which the name Gotham implies, but distinctly refers to publishing with the book forms used to create the skyscraper icon."

Designers: Eric Baker and Eric Strohl

Coca Cola Can Design - Part Deux

In April I posted about a special edition Coke can I'd been given. Above are all 5 summer edition designs. I still like the aviator sunglasses the best, but the grill design is coming in a close second.

WWF: It's your turn

Another batch of brilliantly simple ads for the World Wildlife Fund, by JWT Singapore and from Cannes Lions 2009. The signature black and white of these print ads is signature of the organization's identity. An easy to grasp idea is another mark of a WWF ad.

JWT Singapore
Executive Creative Directors: Ali Shabaz, Tay Guan Hin
Creative Director: Ali Shabaz
Copywriter: Pradeep D'souza
Account Manager: Peter Cheung, Group Account Director
Art Directors: Christiano Choo, Karen Muck
Production Manager: Neo Kian Heng

Honda Insight

From Rubin Postaer and Associates, comes these commercials for the Honda Insight. I enjoy the choreographed idea of showing a subject and then revealing more people, with their Insights of course. The music is well-chosen: fun, welcoming and relaxing.

Fiat: ecoDrive

Latest to spark my interest is the sharp website design by AKQA, for FIAT. Done for the Italian automobile maker's new ecoDrive initiative that clocks how you drive your FIAT ultimately to reduce the driver's carbon footprint by analyzing the results and changing habit. Basically, it's Nike+ for your FIAT. The website has fresh graphics and though buying a FIAT isn't in my near-future, exploring the website was definitely worth it.

Book Cover Design

Great book cover image for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Unsure of the designer.

Bento Box

This is the Bento Box from L.A. based Plastica. Love the design and practicality of this snack box set.

BMW Expression of Joy

A few weeks back my friend was reading the architecture and design magazine, Dwell when she showed me the brilliant media and creative placement BMW had done. To coincide with the launch of the automakers Z4 Roadster (also a sweet design in itself, the first BMW roadster with a retractable hardtop), Expression of Joy is how artist Robin Rhode used paint, a massive canvas and the Z4 to create a piece of art.

With help from GSD&M Idea City in Austin, Texas, and Dotglu in New York, Expression of Joy fuses innovation with raw creative talent. The paintbrush became the tires of the Z4 and the brushstrokes depended on however Rhode manuevered the vehicle. The website contains several videos to show the process, along with the entire canvas. Visitors to the site can create their own Expression of Joy by disecting the canvas. My Expression of Joy is below.
An article from Brandweek discusses the media used, including the cover takeover of Dwell's June issue that originally sparked my interest.

Random Findings

I got these images from a friend. I enjoy both visuals, the top was taken in Paris and the bottom was taken in Ireland.

Sand Dancer

Director Valerie Reid does an excellent job showing the work and passion of New Zealand sand artist, Peter Donnelly in this short film, The Right Step. Better known as Sand Dancer, Donnelly creates huge pictures in the sand, remarkably, without ever seeing the whole piece until he is done. Reid gracefully illustrates Sand Dancer's beautiful outlook on his artwork, which is washed away with high tide. He sees the piece's birth, life, and death and then the cycle continues with a new work of art and in that, he finds his peace.

Polar Bears

Director Tim Godsall of Biscuit Filmworks for Ogilvy New York received plenty of gold stars from the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) by winning in the Viral/Web Film category and the Audience Choice at AICP's Next Awards. The Next Awards "honor multidimensional brand promotions in the moving image." "Polar Bears," done for the Environmental Defense Fund and Ad Council, follows the trend of recent environmental PSAs with a poignant delivery of the message. Worthy work for a worthy cause.

Portland State University Logo

It took me a second, actually a few, to figure out Portland State University's logo. But now that I have, I love design. This is probably in part because it reminds me of a Celtic symbol of some sorts, not to mention the flawless fit of the lettering.

The Ugly Truth Poster

So I'm not sure if this movie will be any good, even though Gerard Butler is nice on the eyes...but I do like The Ugly Truth movie poster because the message is immediately clear. Words are unnecessary.

Where the Wild Things Are Trailer

I saw the Where the Wild Things Are trailer awhile ago and loved everything about the it, from the typeface to the music. It looks like the film will be a visual adventure, just like the book.

Illustrator Zara Picken

The images below are done by talented illustrator, Zara Picken out of Bristol, England. Picken's website has a tons of sweet work. Intelligent illustrations, love them!

A quoi ça sert l'amour

Simple. Charming. Nice job Louis Clichy.

Go with Visa: First Global Campaign

Back in March, Visa with the help of TBWA\Chiat\Day, launched their first global campaign, "More People Go with Visa" changing from the previous , "It's everywhere you want to be." Morgan Freeman smartly remains their spokesperson, the always comforting voice of reason. I like both of the two commercials below because of the tone and the visual story. The first is in a pizzeria and shows the stylistic flair of an old school pizza-making joint, something you don't get from a chain restaurant. And I love Mambo Italiano as a backdrop. The second spot, features an aquarium visit and has beautiful color movement. According to a Visa press release, the global campaign reflects "the company's evolution to a single, global company" and now enables the brand to use one unified marketing tactic. Not only is this money saving for Visa, but it also reflects how Visa customers, (specifically in the U.S.) are cutting back, and being smarter about their spending.

Panamericana Escola de Arte e Design : Part Dos

Here's more from AlmapBBDO's campaign, How Far Does Your Creativity Go for the Panamericana Escola de Arte e Design. The original print ads (one below) are in an early post.


These new ads are clever placement ideas including napkins, placemats, bathroom stalls, t-shirts and even grafitti, all that get people to interact with the ads.

Advertising Agency: AlmapBBDO, São Paulo, Brazil
Creative Directors: Marcello Serpa, Luiz Sanches, Dulcídio Caldeira
Copywriter: Andre Godoi
Art Director: Andre Gola
Producer: José Roberto Bezerra
Account Supervisors: Martha Almeida, Isabela Filippi
Advertiser’s Supervisor: Enrique Lipszyc