Self promotion

Here are some unusual business card designs I have been looking at recently as a self-promotion technique. I think the most effective ones incorporate the specific business/speciality into the design of the card:


Chest Physician


Marriage Counselling


Acupuncture


Second-hand shop


Yoga/fitness


Personal trainer


Proof reader


Stylist

OK!

These images feature in the toilets of OK Karaoke in Leeds' City Centre. The images incorporate the logo of the bar into their toilet signs. I think they're really clever, and appropriate.

Cleansing graffiti

I have seen this advertisement, along with numerous other similar ones around the Hyde Park area. They are advertising 118's online menu and instead of being sprayed on the floor in paint (which probably would create some negative publicity for the company), the pavement around the stencil has been cleaned, making the advertisement stand out. I think this is a really clever, unusual way of advertising. It's quirky, unique and memorable; i love that it's not in any way damaging, but in fact the total opposite.

Shockvertising

It's a question that's lingered for quite some time, but never really been properly answered: Is shock advertising effective, or are the audiences too shocked, and busy complaining to take notice of the advert's actual message?

The main companies I can think of that manage to create plenty of enemies and receive masses of complaints are Benetton and Barnardo's. One particular Barnardo's campaign that featured in several newspapers before being banned consisted of a baby injecting itself with heroin. There are some positive reviews however - some think shock is necessary in order to successfully deliver the message:

"Anything that wakes people up to this is for the better. People sit around with their heads in the sand too often" - Roger Alton, The Observer.

The editor of the Guardian claimed that its readers were sophisticated enough to deal with it and understand the message. However this clearly wasn't the case. It's likely that audiences will be more accepting of shock advertising if it for a good cause, but sometimes charities can't even escape the fact that their message won't outweigh the horror that the audiences feel. I think this'd be a great subject to investigate further, as I'd really like to explore whether it is possible to ethically deliver such a shocking message about such horrific topics, or whether shock is the only way forward.

Big-headed Art

About a year ago, as I was gazing out the window of a coach whilst heading down the M62, I saw what I thought was a giant white head on a hill gazing right back at me. And then it was gone, we'd passed, and I had no idea what, why and even IF it was there. But of course, it was. I look out for it each time I pass, and it literally is a huge sculpture of a head. It wasn't until I was watching Channel 4's Big Art programme that I discovered the 20 metres high 'Dream' was designed by Jaume Plensa. It takes the form of the head of a girl with her eyes closed, in a seemingly dream-like state. The artist intended the sculpture to represent looking towards a brighter future and creating a beautiful place on what was a former spoiler heap.



I think the piece is highly inspirational and the 'brighter future' is well-represented as Dream pays no attention to the relics of heavy industry around - or beneath - her. Her zen-like meditation will remain no matter what.

Sculpture in Painting

The Henry Moore institute in Leeds' latest exhibition explores the relationship between art and 3D. A campaign, starting next week aims to maximise the number of visitors by using large-format graphics, posters, and giving away free merchandise. It sounds like the campaign might reel in the visitors, but I just hope the exhibition itself lives up to all the hype. Having seen several exhibitions at the Henry Moore institute, I can't say I've ever been overly impressed; The last one, 'The New Monumentality' was hardly exhilarating.

Tetley's Good Earth

The identity, branding and packaging of a new range of Tetley products, 'Good Earth' is currently underway. The new product is organic and is based around 3 principles to display its properties:

- Good for the planet
- Good for others
- Good to you

The 'secret' halo above the 'e' in the logo reflects the product's 'goodness', as do the soft lowercase letters. Not obviously linked to Tetley's, and with a sense of honesty attached to it, I think this product will prove quite popular.

FACT

FACT (The Foundation for Art & Creative Technology) is a Multimedia complex in Liverpool which was founded in 1989 to inspire people, and promote film, video and new media. FACT offers many opportunities for audiences, and a support system for artists.



The building itself is aesthetically impressive, covered in zinc tiles and LED columns; it's the perfect home for such an expressive and stimulating complex. Facilities include galleries for moving image and streaming media broadcasts, a Medialab for workshops and the development and production of artists' projects and The Box gallery and projection space. Not to mention a cafe, bar and 3 cinema picture house, screening the latest arthouse releases.

FACT really is an inspiring organisation, providing endless opportunities in the world of film and new media. Definitely worth a visit at least.

3 Minute Wonder

3 Minute Wonder is a short Channel 4 Television slot where first time Directors and Producers can broadcast their work to a large audience. Channel 4 is aiming to help new talent break into the very competitive UK Television industry - something that they might not be able to do by themselves.

Channel 4 provides the Directors with £4,000, and offers them their assistance in making their short film. This is a great way of getting their name out there, and pushing them one step further towards their ultimate goal. Channel 4's 4talent also runs competitions, so the winners get even more publicity. Any up-and-coming Director should jump at the chance to help their career, and when handed on a plate like this, it is the perfect opportunity.

This is one example of the short series, a 3 minute documentary about street art:

Books on the Edge

"I am attempting to blur the line between objects, sculpture and photography"

Butterfly

Texan artist Cara Barer bases her work on taking photographs of the edges of pages, in whimsical and elegant positions. Her inspiration came when she photographed whe intricately bent pages of a wet Yellow Pages book. After this, she moved onto other books, carefully positioning the pages into beautiful designs on a studio black background.

Barer does not consider herself a photographer, but simply an artist who uses photography. She takes into consideration the size of the book, the quality and colour of the paper, and her designs are often even influenced by the content of the book.

The final photographs are really impressive, and display great depth - it's unclear how they have been created on initial viewing, but I think discovering the 'page design' only makes them even more effective and inspiring. What an absorbing and original type of art.

Shitake

Essential Wear

These are just one of the Freebies given out at this year's Freshers - Miniature shopping bags containing free condoms. The bags have images of men and women on them, bearing bold statements such as 'I've got Chlamydia' and 'I've got Gonorrhoea'. The reverse side of the bags say 'He/She won't be wearing this, so make sure you use a condom'. I think these are really successful, as the message is clearly and bluntly delivered, free condoms are received, and the small bag is really unique and handy. Perfect for the intended target market of students!

Rock Stars' Art

It's not often that you hear of musicians wanting to become artists - actors maybe; but it appears that in reality, Rock stars actually love showing off their artistic skills. London Scream Gallery is currently showcasing artwork from Rock and Pop singers, past and present, from now until the end of October. It's not surprising that some of them show extreme lack of artistic flare (although are obviously worth a fortune!) However, others make me think that perhaps they took the wrong route when deciding to be a musician. Some of them are pretty dark and obscure though - maybe that's the effect the Rock star lifestyle has on you.

'The Enabler' by Marilyn Manson shows depth and emotion and reflects the image he portrays as a Rock Star.

'Red Charlie' by Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones paints very lifelike portraits - who knew you could be so skilled at two things?!

I can't say that Bob Dylan has quite the same skill, as shown in this supposed self-portrait. Not only does it not resemble him, it makes me wonder if he painted this before he became a musician - potentially when he was a child.

Chris Mars of The Replacements paints creepy, yet really detailed and realistic pieces, as displayed here in 'Haggerty'. I really like this piece, but can't say I'd want it in my house - luckily I can't afford it!

John Lennon's 'sketches' - although not the most skillful - have become utterly iconic, and recognized worldwide. 'Real love' is clearly of him and Yoko, despite its simplicity.

Saw IV

Dare you see... SAW IV???

The first was well thought out, dark, twisty and like nothing I've seen before. Great!

The second was predictable, gory, hectic and yet somehow still pretty good.

The third was sickening, far-fetched and a step too far.

So six films later, I'm not quite sure what the producers are thinking, or where they are going. It's not original anymore - hopefully they're not going for a horror version of James Bond, because I'm not sure I can cope with 21 Saw films. Not that it directly affects me, but they're taking up precious cinema slots.

Defintely less a case of 'Do you dare?' and more 'Do you care...?'

EnviroFurniture

I was recently watching Dragon's Den, and was less than impressed with 'Reestore's' pitch to the Dragons, which included seating which was made from old shopping trollies. These designs might not look out of place in a hospital ward, however I can't imagine them enhancing the aesthetics of a modern style apartment. Unsurprisingly, I was shocked when two of the Dragon's decided to invest £50,000 in the project.

As I was obviously missing something, I decided to check out Reestore's website, and it turns out, some of their designs aren't half bad. I can totally imagine some of these designs being a modern interior designer's idea of luxury...

A gear box table?




A plane wing table?




Can't say I'd ever want a bath in my living room though!

Don't drink and drive

Really effective, simple advert to show what your car could end up like.

Logo illusion

I've always been perplexed by the simple FedEx logo's strong and hidden message - the arrow between the 'e' and the 'x'.
Recently, the cleverness of Amazon's logo was brought to my attention, where the 'a' and the 'z' are connected with an arrow, implying that they sell everything from A to Z.These really are the most effective, memorable logos. Just take a look at the logo for The Guild of Food Writers. Clever illusions within logos are definitely the way forward.

500 days of Summer

Boy meets Girl.
Boy falls in love.
Girl doesn't.

I've got to admit, 500 Days of Summer is quite an emotional journey not only for the characters but for the audience too. The film follow aspiring architect Tom's growing obsession with work collegue Summer, however as stated in the opening, this is by no means a love story - more of a break up story. As a retrospective film, the audience's emotions are unsettled from the start when the end of the relationship is shown first.

I enjoyed so many aspects of the film, paticularly its quirky nature. Normally I'd cringe if one of the main characters broke into song and dance (unless of course I was watching Grease), but the Director really pulled it off. The seasons, wardrobe and production design matched the emotions of the main charater - noticeably duller when he was feeling down, and the killer soundtrack assisted in making the audience feel truly zealous and emotional.

Bunny Suicides

"Little fluffy rabbits who just don't want to live anymore"

I can't say I'd find it all that funny if I stumbled across my rabbit impaled on a light saber, but Andy Riley succeeds in creating one of the funniest non-textual books I've ever seen. His comical illustrations and endless ideas make this book highly entertaining, everytime.

Superlambanana-rama

When I first saw the 17-foot original Superlambanana, I thought it was a total eyesore and couldn't think of any reasonable excuse for its hideous design. However, after my first - and possibly unfair - judgement it seems that the statue has actually proven quite successful in raising awareness within Liverpool. Although its usual colour is yellow, the Superlambanana has occasionally been repainted in order to sponsor certain causes - for example purple during the Smoke-free Liverpool campaign, and pink in support for a breast cancer awareness charity.

After my initial hatred for the Superlambanana, I couldn't help but join the thousands of people in 2008 scouring Liverpool for one of the 125 replicas created during the European Capital of Culture. I still can't say I like the design of the statue, but I'll tolerate it due to the impression it has had on Liverpool, and the causes that it has successfully sponsored.

The original Superlambanana remains in Liverpool, some of the replicas have been auctioned off, and others can be seen in Museums countrywide.

Sew what?

Whilst on the subject of window displays, I was pretty impressed with All Saints in Manchester's latest display, consisting of hundreds of old Singer Sewing machines. I was amazed by how many people from all generations had gathered round to look at it (the older ones possibly having used one before!) This is definitely an innovative idea for a window display, and reflects All Saints' authenticity. I'd say it shows off the popularity of the shop, as their clothing ranges aren't even required in the window to interest the customer. Although it did seem that more people were standing outside than in...

Hang about!

At first glance, I barely noticed yet another wacky window display in Harvey Nichols. However, upon closer inspection, I realised that the figures were in fact made up entirely of wooden clothes hangers. I can only imagine how long these displays took to create, but I'd say it was certainly worth the hours of work.

Normally I find myself walking past Harvey Nichols without looking twice, as the extortionate prices are way beyond my budget.

However this time, I needed a closer look. My wallet still wouldn't let me enter the shop, but the thought-provoking window display definitely ticks the box of capturing the shoppers' attention.

Stonemade gadgets

I'm thinking weight may be a slight limitation of these designs...