Egg decoration by Fred. Eggs by Feather Ridge Farm, Elizaville, NY.
Month: March 2013
Tidy by design
Ursus Wehrli, comedian and cabaret artist, shares his vision for a cleaner, more organized, tidier form of art by deconstructing the paintings of modern masters into their component pieces, sorted by color and size.
Neatness counts
Tidy by design… Calling all OCD neat-obsessed. Great profile in the home section of the Times today on Ursus Wehrli, famous German comedian, and his recent publishing endeavors. Two earlier books, “Tidying Up Art” and “Tidying Up More Art” display his unique take on cleaning up masterworks of art. Love and generally live by the concept of clean or neat design (and wish all of our clients did as well). Gotta give this funny man credit for discovering a very intriguing project. Also interesting to note that the author’s home is a bit of a mess…
Pop-star branding
Pop goes the branding… Interesting look at Justin Timberlake’s return to the pop charts and a masterful marketing strategy leveraging both traditional advertising, promotion and social media. The shift of power away from big record companies towards artists and their own management is obviously in full gear. It clearly takes all things, firing on all cylinders and flawlessly orchestrated to produce the increasingly rare megahit. Extraordinary talent also doesn’t hurt…
Product photography in focus
Curated basics. Kaufmann Mercantile is an online store for carefully selected, long-lasting, and well-designed goods. Think your favorite hardware store meets the hippest of Scandinavian emporiums (natural, simply constructed, minimalist, sometime ingenious, etc.). Simply designed no-frills site, amazingly curated product line, fair pricing for the most part. Product photography is perfectly clean and crisp mixed along with some simply styled environmental shots and vintage photographs. If logic prevails and these folks do their part in marketing all this great stuff, KM should fare very well. Dutch gardening tools for everyone…
Google-driven pattern making
Anthropocene by David Thomas Smith (Copper House Gallery, March 21st – April 16th, 2013, Dublin, Ireland). Fascinating new exhibit by artist utilizing aerial images found online. Each image is composed from thousands of thumbnails extracted as screen grabs from Google Maps, which are then reconstructed piece by piece using Photoshop to produce large detailed and patterned images. The artist draws upon the patterns and motifs used by Persian carpet makers, inspired by the weaver’s use of the carpet to record their experiences. A complicated, compelling use of color, pattern and place…
Simply, fab
According to the website, Fab exists for one simple reason: To make you smile. Always great to have a simple, clear or even catchy mission, but looks like these guys also intend on world domination. Businessweek looks at the online retailer where its 12+ million registered users have racked up more than $100 million in sales last year. The store “for everyday design” is packed with whimsy, camp and kitsch in clothing, accessories, electronics and just about everything for the home. Both new and vintage merchandise ranges from the inexpensive and practical to the cute and clever to the novel and ridiculous. All pretty darn affordable. All very much tied into social media whenever possible. And all with a friendly, quirky brand persona that clearly has helped fuel the stellar expansion. This year, Fab is launching extensive lines of private-label merchandise including luggage, linens, and jewelry. International expansion continues with presence in 16 countries (mostly in Europe) with eyes on Japan, Brazil, Turkey and India. To go along with the growth, the company just raised $100+ million in venture capital from a group of investors that include Andreessen Horowitz and Atomico Ventures, a European firm led by the founders of Skype. Think Ikea meets Urban Outfitter meets Spencer Gifts (blast from the past, but yes, still around). Hamburger sweatshirt, beard hat or a package of rabbit legs, anyone?
Brand folie
Forget the stadium, put your name on a town! This is a bizarre one. Towns looking for a new identity to leverage economically(???) and companies looking for some exposure come together renaming the municipality in exchange for free services or equipment. New York Times article looks at DISH, Texas (population 201), formally known as Clark, and its recent deal with the satellite TV service. According to one of its citizens, the deal “afforded the town and its residents a unique opportunity for progressive growth that otherwise would not have existed.” Silly townsfolk and downright stupid PR stunt…
Happy St. Paddy’s…
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Make it accessible (and cute as hell)
Crewcuts Quiz… Video announcing Spring 2013 Crewcuts collection. Seriously cute…
