Coke Zero Ads

These are sooooo much better than the "Coke Zero Marketing Managers" trying to sue their counterparts. Hit Passion Pictures to see the spots. Great animation, voice over and a really fun way to communicate the product benefit.

Charlie Harper, Giant Golden Book of Biology

Look at this wonderful illustration for the book Giant Golden Book of Biology. Every page has something wonderful, I'm not even sure you could distract me from looking at the pictures long enough to read it. See more here.

Charlie Harper:

When I look at a wildlife or nature subject, I don’t see the feathers in the wings, I just count the wings. I see exciting shapes, color combinations, patterns, textures, fascinating behavior and endless possibilities for making interesting pictures. I regard the picture as an ecosystem in which all the elements are interrelated, interdependent, perfectly balanced, without trimming or unutilized parts; and herein lies the lure of painting; in a world of chaos, the picture is one small rectangle in which the artist can create an ordered universe.

The one other detail to mention, published 1961, only took 47 years for us to find it.

Joe Duffy to Judge ADCDs 53rd Annual Award Show

2008 ADCD Show Judge #1: Definitely not an average Joe.

That's right, one of the most respected names in the branding and design community—Joe Duffy, founder and pilot of Duffy & Partners. Joe and his troops changed and elevated the design game by collaborating with legendary ad agency, Fallon, where together they masterfully blended branding, design, and advertising. His sharp understanding of how design influences consumer attitudes has triggered many big ideas on all fronts—retail environments, brand experiences, marketing communications. Joe's work has influenced our very culture by pioneering brands and identities for the likes of Coca-Cola, Starbucks, McDonald's, The Islands of The Bahamas, EDS, Nikon, FAO Schwarz, and on and on and on. In 2005, Joe wrote the book Brand Apart (a must-read). It is a profile of the most powerful integrated branding case histories of the past two decades.

Needless to say, we're stoked about Joe. The show isn't until early fall, but we couldn't contain our excitement. In weeks to come, we will announce three more judges to join Joe in looking at the best work Colorado has to offer.

Russians Do Type

Nicely done hand worked typography from the Motherland. Check out more tidbits here.
Wonder what they say?

Nicholas Di Genova

Wow, my first post! I feel just...CAPITAL! OK then
this is something I stumbled across - amazing detail and intricacies. Sort of a throwback to Frank Miller's older stuff.
via designiskinky

Fidel Kicked out the Rum

These are just FANTASTIC.
Print below, not as good as the TV. Can't find the agency responsible for them though, anybody have an idea?

Creative License

Great looking story from Adobe that is there to promote it's creative suite, from print to web to motion. Fun to watch.

No More Abandoned Carts

Check out this viral video, despite it being fun and cute, in a cowboy sort of way. I think it is a program pushing you to online shopping through Verisign. Hit the website www.nomoreabandonedcarts.com to find out more.

Tap Water for Unicef

A great Program for kids to get clean water.

Beginning Sunday, March 16 through Saturday, March 22, restaurants will invite their customers to donate a minimum of $1 for the tap water they would normally get for free. For every dollar raised, a child will have clean drinking water for 40 days.

Not only is it a great idea, this site is clean and easy to understand, and I hope that this is the bottle they serve it in.



Maybe even with a CO tag.

What is on Your Mind

Durex ads out of Milan italy, I applaud http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifthe art and the fun nature, and something more refreshing than the average Condom ad. See the video over at

Cultivator Spotted Nationally

Cultivators new work for the Denver Rescue Mission has been Spotted over at notcot.org, getting a little national love.

Paper Sculptures

Layers upon Layers of colorful goodness. These are beautiful, and possible inspiration for our designer teams in our upcoming Paper Fashion Show. The art is here and the RSVP is here.

Coffin Ads

Thought this was cute, for death and all.

Pyrotechnic Imagination

Check out the video of the work of artist Cai Guo-Qiang as he creates one of his Gunpowder Drawings. From the New York Times

Video

Adobe Light-Field Camera

Isn't the future cool, especially for all the control freaks out there. pretty much any one reading this.

This is a new lens prototype from Adobe, what makes this the coolest thing since sliced bread is the ability to have marginal 3D imaging, but a selection of focus, AFTER you shoot the shot. Hit the comments and give us your impression. Is it as cool as we think it is.

Hit the link to see more shots, but more improtantly, see the brief video.

VIA NotCot

The Modern Day Type Master.

Andy Cruz of House Industries is the modern day type master. You would expect that. What you don't expect is just how forward thinking he and his company really is.

His presentation to ADCD on Thursday started as a quick tour into what House Industries is into and has been doing lately, but then he began his real presentation, his real passions, his heroes, his influences. Big Daddy Roth, Coop, Alexander Girard, he keeps going. He talks about his entry into fashion, design, architecture, furniture, shoes, he keeps going. He talks about all the research they put into any effort they put out, and he shows a real understanding of what they do.

It's not the general type-nut stuff, its a understanding of hand drawn fonts, dancing baselines and how different letters can begin to interact with each other. How the inspiration he pulls from influences not just letter forms, but words. How hand drawn fonts should work, how the computer takes away all the playfulness. Ok, maybe it is a bit type-nut stuff, but then he really begins to show Houses visionary side.

He pulls out the big guns. House may just change the way you work with fonts, type, applications. If you thought that open type is changing how we work, what he showed us makes that look under-developed. He has been talking about interactions between letters and how the skill has been lost because nobody hand draws the type anymore.

House is working on a separate program, that you will need to export from. A program that actively looks at what letters are sitting next to what letters and adjust them so that the become friendlier, warmer, richer. It adjusts the baselines so they dance (his words), it also adjusts the ligatures so the overlap (and underlap). If you are not excited yet, lets just say that it will be the best way to get that custom look, the only better way would be to hire House directly.

If that wasn't the coolest thing, the next bit of type candy was. He then unveiled a program that lets you move a slider on a graph and watch the font "slide" from light to heavy, thin to thick. All of the benefits of "stretching" the font, none of the guilt. The really cool thing was the thing looked great no matter the width or weight.

All of this is coming soon.

That's the essence of House. Its a small shop, filled with the right people. Always digging looking, inspiring. Not too interested in being too big, or too much. Just looking for the next thing they can become obsessed with. The next thing we can all be obsessed with.

Keep an eye on the small shop out of Delaware. They have a few more cool things up their sleeves. A few more things they are passionate about they would like to share. If there we only more shops just like them.

We'd just like to say, thanks Andy.

TONIGHT!

Andy Cruz, the founder of House Industries, a celebrated font factory, is coming tonight, Thursday, to Denver. House has been recognized in Communication Arts, HOW, and other pubs. There's also free beverages, free food, drawings for great giveaways, including t-shirts, block sets, lots of goodies. Limited-edition posters (word is, maybe some prints in copper and wood) will be signed and given away. This is a can't miss for art directors, studio artists, any fan of fonts.

It's tonight with socializing at 6PM, presentation from Andy at 7PM. It's at the Denver Newspaper Agency, 101 West Colfax (parking is at Adam's Mark). There are still tickets available at the door.

Sketchbook Project

Get a sketchbook, from these guys, fill it up with thoughtful images on the theme of saving the world, send it back and they will add it to the gallery. Could be fun. Unfortunately you will have to travel to Georgia to see it. Still have your attention, click here to see the Sketchbook Project.

The Superbowl Ad you Never Saw

Probably a reason for that, nice direction, although the message is a bit...rough?...and Kernal Sanders always smiles on the logo, hmmm.

Emergency Response Unit

This is beautiful, but that would be the last thing on you mind when you need it. More than that, it seems functional. If only it put itself together, but if that is its only flaw...

Really great idea, fantastic design from Toby McInnes, now if they only would make it.
(P.S. The waiving "survivor" is just priceless)

Typographic Fruit

Oh sure, Right now this is a wonderful blending of type and fruit. Really wonderful, until the major fruit marketers get a hold of it and all our fruit carries advertisements for Nike, oh wait, that would be cool, once or twice. This is the work of artist Sarah King over at her site.

House Industries Love

Just opened my mail, and recieved a large box from Andy and House Industries. It was just like Christmas, T's, Books, the above block set and more. And as much as it pains me to part ways with it (I'll just have to my own) we will be giving this stuff away on Thursday. If that is not enough to get you to come on down, read this article over at This Week in Denver for more motivation. Its the appetizer before what surely will be the buffet.

If that is STILL not enough, word is from Birdwood Press, that we will have not only the posters to be signed, but we may even have a few prints in copper and wood!

Still need to RSVP??

See you there.

Andy Cruz and Birdwood Press

We just picked up the posters for the House Industries event, and they are beautiful. Designed by Andy Cruz and printed by our very own, award winning, Birdwood Press. These posters will be available at the event (while you're at it, RSVP) and as a bonus, Andy will be available to sign them. Really, you can't miss this.

Unbelievable

This is not a photograph, this is drawn with a ball-point-pen. A BALL POINT PEN. The stunning pictures, measuring up to 10ft high, were drawn by Spanish Fine Artist Juan Francisco Casas. They each take about 14 BALL POINT PENS! to make. Check out more of his work here.

Call for Reviewers

The Art Directors Club of Denver and AIGA invite you to be amongst the esteemed professionals asked to participate in “THE REVIEW”, our annual portfolio review event for college students studying in the creative fields such as graphic design, illustration and photography.

THE REVIEW gathers students and professionals for a night of constructive portfolio feedback and in-depth discussion about the glamorous world of the working creative professional. THE REVIEW is open to any and all design, photography, multimedia and illustration students.

Please help us, help our next generation of creatives by sharing your professional expertise and providing guidance to them in fine tuning their portfolios. This is your chance to give back to the creative community and to help the next generation of designers, illustrations and or photographers to succeed in this industry. This year’s event will be held at the Adirondacks in the Auraria Campus (room 440) on Thursday, April 24 from 6:00 to 10:00 pm.

If you have an interest, and a passion for shaping Colorado's design/illustration/photographic future, email Kimberly Carey Putnam, ADCD's Education Chair, to make a difference in a young, up-and-coming student's life.

Take a few minutes

Take a few minutes to watch this. Mutch better than the Brown White Board.

Out of Birmingham

Art Project

This just seems creepy cool.

Escalator Haircut

We have all seen these before, but this one is one that seems to use it well, which is refreshing.

VIA I Believe in Advertising

Call for Marketing Judges

The Western-English Trade Association is looking for individuals interested in judging its National All Industry Marketing (AIM) award entries. AIM awards is a program designed to recognize the best marketing and publishing creativity for the Western and English industries.

Judging is scheduled for Friday, March 14, 2008 at the Denver Merchandise Mart,451 E. 58th Avenue. Judges are divided according to their area of expertise and/or interest (marketing, public relations and publishing.) Judging will start in the morning, and should be completed by 2:00 p.m. (Lunch will be provided.)

To preview the categories, go to our website and click on AIM Awards to download a copy of the entry forms.

If you're interested in being a judge, please let Glenda Chipps, Executive Director, know by February 22. If you have questions, call 303-295-2001.

Ikeas New Site

OK. Stop what you are doing and go here NOW!
Really, I wish I did this.

Adidas

Adidas has been letting their agencies do some really great work lately, and for some time now. Check out the Story behind the brand on their website here with some great stop motion animation to boot.

Possible pun intended.

WWF

Thought this was cute, in a threatening-the-life-of-the-planet sort of way.

Death of Polaroids

I have mixed feelings about this:

Polaroid Corp., the Massachusetts company that gave the world instant film photography, is shutting down its film manufacturing lines in the state and abandoning the technology that made the company famous.

On the one hand, if you ever have been to a photoshoot in which the photographer hands you a polaroid after shaking it, flapping it and placing it in his armpit and then asking you what you think of it, and then you have to make an educated guess on whether the film will look anything like this (film is the stuff they used to put into cameras) then you too will feel my joy about the death of a 40+ year old technology that was never improved upon.

But if you never had to do that, and have had always shot digitally, then I feel kinda sad inside, too.

Full Article

Minority Cartoonist plan Crossover

If you reguarly look at the comics pages in the Sunday paper, you may have noticed a crossover (a story line that runs through multiple comic strips on the same day). This one standout because it is the minority cartoonist's voice. What do they have to say? Only that they are not all interchangeable (imagine that). Check out this quote from Cory Thomas of the strip "Mama's Boyz:"

"In my opinion, and I know I'm not alone, when it comes to equality, the comics pages are still way behind other forms of entertainment. When I first created Mama's Boyz back in 1992, the two biggest blockades were "it's too much like Curtis," and 'people in the midwest will not be able to relate.' Fortunately for me, a lot has changed in the past 15 years. Now I hear 'it's too much like Boondocks, and people in the Midwest won't be able to relate!' When, thank God for change or I may have lost my mind years ago. In fact, I went out of my way to create a strip that didn't have kids in it, and still heard that it was too much like Boondocks."

For all the progress we seem like we are making in this world, this still exists, in something as wholesome (and possibly cut-throat) as the comic pages.

Vote

It's Timely, it's pretty, but do these type of promotions really work any more?

VIA IBIA

Time stops at Grand Central

Food for Thought...

Provocative... and great package design from around the world.

Click here to view story.

Sagmeister Comes to Denver

Astonishingly, Stefan Sagmeister has only learned a scant twenty things (or so) in his life. However, he has managed (amazingly) to publish these hard-won maxims all over the world in a variety of spaces and formats. His dictums have made their way on to billboards, lightboxes, projections and over-sized inflatable monkeys, to name a few. In his Denver presentation Sagmeister will begin with his personal diary, adding design, a little art, some psychology and a dash of happiness. The resulting blend will look unique, feel delightful, and taste surprisingly yummy.

When: Fri, Mar 7, 2008, 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Where: The Oxford Hotel, The Grand Ballroom, 1600 17th St., Denver, CO 80201
Cost: $30 at the door, $20 with advance registration online
AIGA Members: $10 at the door, $5 with advance registration online
For more information and to register, visit:aigacolorado.org

The Axe Effect

Took a couple of days for this to hit my desk, but behold, the AXE EFFECT. These ran in Chicago and New York on Super Tuesday. Brilliant.