Hill Holliday’s Rebranding ‘Sweat the Small Stuff and Big Stuff Happens’

Posted on June 11, 2012 by The Pick
  • Agencies are brands, too.
    Really.
  • So Hill Holliday took a good hard look at the people, the hallways, the coffee mugs and business cards. Basically every touch point of our brand.

    And they gave them a makeover. More like an extreme makeover. With a new look, tone and personality that’s confident. Contemporary. And even some things that don’t begin with the letter “c.”

  • Wherever Hill Holliday’s employees go — to the mailroom, the coffeemaker, even the bar around the corner, it’s a branding opportunity. So they created a whole bunch of things – from stationery and thumb drives to notebooks and Chuck Taylors – that our employees would not only covet, but share and show off.
  • And that’s just what happened.
  • Check more from Hill Holliday on their website.
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Zave Smith’s “Serving New Dishes”

Posted on June 6, 2012 by The Pick
 

By Zave Smith

Often our best work is produced in between. Suddenly we have a moment. Suddenly we have a bit of space between our client’s projects. A model calls wanting to shoot, a book read on an airplane leaves a lasting impression.

Copyright Zave Smith

“The Night Circus” by Erin Morgenstern is a novel about a circus in the late 19th century. The world Morgenstern created in this novel was a world I loved visiting. In Morgenstern’s circus, ascetics were as important as daring.

Copyright Zave Smith

Yandea, my subject, is beautiful, smart and knows her art history. On the phone she mentions she has a black and white dress, she mentions that she does not have a car so we are going to have shoot near her home, she also mentions that there was a small carnival a block away. With visions from “The Night Circus” in my head I drove out to Reading.

Copyright Zave Smith

Sometimes we shoot with a game plan and with a layout in hand. Other times we just go into the visual kitchen with various ingredients to see if we can cook something for supper. My shoot with Yandea was a box of flour, a quart of milk, an egg, some chicken and a few different unlabeled jars of seasonings. When I looked at her outfit I thought, “let’s paint her face in black and white.” When I saw an empty field near her home, I grabbed a hula-hoop. Yandea also wanted to shoot in a colorful peasant dress so over to the Carnival we went, dress on, searching for the fun.

Copyright Zave Smith

The next day when looking over the images, I knew that I had some interesting stuff but the images felt flat. For a week I played with the post processing trying different color palettes to balance my vision of fantasy and reality, of beauty, fun and the sadness that I felt while shooting. It took me a week of walking away and walking back to my desk to find the right visual seasonings that made a plate of ingredients into a photograph.

Copyright Zave Smith

It’s time to head back to the airports. It is time to fulfill my client’s dreams. In this day of shrinking budgets and invisible clients the only way to become visible, and to keep our phones ringing, is to serve new dishes. New dishes are not born during the rush. They are born during the times in between.

Copyright Zave Smith

To see more of Zave Smith’s work go to his website and Altpick page.

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ICON7 – Program Highlights

Posted on June 4, 2012 by The Pick

As ICON7 approaches I’m pretty excited to see some of these workshops taking place during the conference.  Here are some of the highlights (to see the full program click here):

Wednesday, June 13th                                                                                                                      The RISD Experience : “Colors, Contrast + Compliments” : Mary Jane Begin

“Can I Kick It Soccer Match with Jordin Isip”

“The RISD/ICON Party and Exhibit”

Thursday, June 14th                                                                                                                            “Art Director’s Pet Peeves”: SooJin Buzelli

“The Insane Awe Inspiring Mega-Music Pumping Figure Drawing Jam Session!”:           Mark Todd & Esther Pearl Watson

“Young Illustrators The First Four Years”: Nick Illuzada, Daniel Fishel, Kelsey Dake, Victo Ngai & JooHee Yoon

“Educating Entrepreneurs The ICON7 Educator’s Symposium”: Robert Brinkerhof, Vanessa Bertozzi, Susie Ghahremani, Alyssa Nassner, Stephanie Pereira, Whitney Sherman, Oren Sherman & Bill Foulkes

“Opening Night Party”

Friday , June 15th                                                                                                                                     “Opening Remarks Masters of Ceremony”: Jennifer Daniel & Nicholas Blechman

“ICON7 Rhode Show Bazaar”

Saturday, June 16th                                                                                                                                 “Our Favorite Art Director”: Steven Charny, Rolling Stone; Paul Buckley, Penguin Books, Thomas Schmid, Buck TV

“To-MFA or Not-to-MFA: A Debate”: Marshall Arisman, Chair MFA Illustration School of Visual Arts and David L. Porter, Professor of Illustration at Rhode Island School of Design

“The Unwritten”: Yuko Shimizu

“The Worlds of Science Fiction and Fantasy”: Irene Gallo, Jon Foster, Greg Manchess & Same Weber

“Keynote: Drawn Together”: Brian Rea & Paul Sahre

“Moth Ball Closing Night Party”

If you haven’t registered yet, you still can!  Click here.

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Carrie Schechter :: Today’s Member Focus

Posted on May 29, 2012 by The Pick

Carrie Schechter is a fashion, music, and celebrity photographer living in New York City. Her free-spirited nature rubs off on her talent and her clients and she has a special way of getting people to let go of their inhibitions to create very conceptual work that has a strong impact on the viewer. Her work is described as haunting, provocative, beautiful and hyper-realistic.

Carrie’s work appears in magazines, ad campaigns, book covers, and album covers. She has recieved lots of press & won numerous international awards for her imagery and her technically outstanding use of light, mood and texture. She continues to be recognized world wide with exhibitions from Moscow to Dubai to Italy.

To see more of Carrie Schechter’s work go to her website and Altpick page.

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Hummingbird Beats: Johanna Goodman

Posted on May 24, 2012 by The Pick

Originally posted on HuffingtonPost.com                                                                             Written by Jill Donenfeld (Founder, The Culinistas)

Johanna Goodman is an artist and illustrator who lives in Nyack, New York.  Her work has been exhibited widely and her illustration work has appeared just about everywhere — she has painted portraits of world leaders for the cover of Time, rock stars for Rolling Stone, CEOs for the Wall Street Journal, and everyone in between. Johanna also loves The Jerk, which makes her someone I want to travel with.

What’s in your bag? When you pack for a trip, in your handbag, in the pockets of your jeans…?

My tiny gold disco wallet, my phone, lip balm, my keys, my camera, a hair rubber band, sunglasses.  In the pockets of my jeans I usually have something my son gave me to hold for him.  A rock.  Or a bottle cap.

When I pack for a trip I don’t need much.  Just this ashtray… And this paddle game. The ashtray and the paddle game and that’s all I need… And this remote control. The ashtray, the paddle game, and the remote control, and that’s all I need… And these matches. The ashtray, and these matches, and the remote control, and the paddle ball… And this lamp. The ashtray, this paddle game, and the remote control, and the lamp, and that’s all I need. And that’s all I need too. I don’t need one other thing, not one… I need this. The paddle game and the chair, and the remote control, and the matches for sure. Well what are you looking at? What do you think I’m some kind of a jerk or something! And this. That’s all I need.
(I apologize to all of your readers who are under age 40, which is probably all of them, who are too young to get that).

You have five minutes to pack up for a trip of which the duration you’re not sure. What do you take?

Plenty of cash — not that I’ll spend it but it’ll make me feel better about the fact that I’m about to forget everything that I’ll really want with me.

What is your most essential article of clothing?

My jeans with patches all over them — they actually fit and I feel good in them.  And a pair of good sunglasses — then you can even feel stylish in a pair of jeans with patches all over them.

What are the top five songs you need to have access to hearing at all times?

I kind of get sick of something after I hear it about ten times, which is why I always listen to wfmu online.  It’s a free form non-commercial radio station where they play the best music of all kinds and you almost never hear the same thing twice.  That said:
1. “End Love” by Ok Go
2. “Eternal Flame” by Joan As Police Woman
3. “Simba Goes down” by Falcatross
4. “Anything” by Nina Simone
5. “Caravan” by Les Paul

What is your preferred hummingbird beat/cities you like to frequent?

New York, Provincetown, San Francisco, Santa Fe

What’s something crazy that you did to follow your passion? (Like, did you live out of your car for a month? Drive 10 hours to pick up a certain, weird material you needed?)

The absolute, end-all, craziest thing I’ve done to follow my passion has been to keep drawing and painting and cutting paper and gluing and scanning and tweaking every chance I get, year upon year, even though it’s totally impractical and self-indulgent and excessive.  I have been consistently crazily following my passion against all better judgment for decades.  One car-living stint or ten hour drive has got nothing on me.

What is one tip you have for traveling — a beauty tip, a survival tip, a culinary tip… ?

Eat well and walk everywhere (which encompasses beauty, survival and culinary).

What makes you a good house guest?

I sing for my supper.

What’s a recent or favorite meal you had while bouncing around the globe?

Can I just be honest and say that I always want sushi?

Where have you had your best night’s sleep?

There’s no place like home.  There’s no place like home.

Who would you like to travel with — three people (you guys can caravan together or go on separate trips)?

Jesus, Einstein and Picasso.  Ha! Just kidding, fuck that.  At the risk of sounding contrived and domestic, I have to say my husband, daughter and son.  They are my posse and I rarely leave home without them.  And I like it that way.

Follow Jill Donenfeld on Twitter: www.twitter.com/theculinistas

See Johanna Goodman’s work on Altpick.com and her website.

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Inked : Skin Art

Posted on May 21, 2012 by The Pick

When photographer Kent Miller first met Azarja at an Inked Magazine party he knew they had to shoot together.  “She was down for it and my MUA Johanna set it up,” says Miller.  “We just wanted to make a few clean colorful shots for us to promote our work.”

A living breathing portfolio in a collaboration that leaves an indelible impression.


It turned into a full day shoot with many different looks.  The shoot went so well that they are already talking about the next location.

Need some new ink? Look her up. Azarja van der Veen.

Photographer: Kent Miller

Make-Up Artist: Johanna

To see more of Kent’s work go to his website and Altpick page.

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For Illustrators, Inspiration is Where You Find It

Posted on May 14, 2012 by The Pick

Originally posted on Agency Access‘ “The Lab“. Written by Illustrator Brian Taylor

Question: Can you give me some examples of top illustration pros and what they use to keep fresh and inspired?

Look Around

My biggest inspiration comes from looking at other illustrators’ work. Whether it’s contemporary or classic illustration, when I see a piece that really excites me, it inspires me to push myself creatively. While I used to pore over the Communication Arts Illustration Annual and the Society of Illustrators annual each year, I find myself more recently looking at individual illustrators’ work. A lot of artists share their work on blogs and I enjoy seeing the sketches and ideas behind each illustration. Allow yourself the time to look around at other work; if you’re constantly looking at your own work, it’s hard to put things in perspective.

I also like to work on personal pieces that excite me. I’m often inspired to do an illustrated tribute after watching movies. No specific direction, no pressure. I’ll just start drawing and combining elements with no fixed size or expectations. Some of these illustrations show up on my blog, some are never actually finished. These illustrations often double as promotional illustrations that I put on my website or on a postcard. A recent personal piece I created was a portrait of the main character from the television show “Breaking Bad.”

The Creative Lab Breaking Bad tv show television illustrators Brian Taylor resized 600

© Brian Taylor

Stop Drawing

Getting outside of the studio/office is a good way to get refreshed. Going for a walk or getting a bit of exercise is the perfect way to clear your head. Often, the time you’re away from drawing is the time you get inspired.

I’ve been out and not even thinking about illustration, and an idea will pop into my head. At that point, I’ll usually jot it down on a notepad or use my phone to email myself the idea. Getting away from your work allows your creative brain to reset and look at things differently.

Connect

Recently, I’ve found connecting with other illustrators to be a great source of inspiration. While a lot of this is done through online friendships, I’ve been making regular trips to New York City, where I’ve been able to meet and talk with fellow illustrators. Look around in your area for different types of networking events.

If you don’t have a large local art community, Twitter, Facebook and various online message boards have great illustration communities that enjoy sharing new work and inspiration. My online interactions have even led to the creation of a group illustration blog called Illo Confidential, where about 20 illustrators share their recent work.

I asked some of my fellow Illo Confidential illustrators what keeps them fresh and inspired:

Daniel Zalkus likes to collect illustrations from old 1950s and 60s magazines. He also enjoys drawing outside to break things up.

Chris Gash and Patrick McQuade force themselves to do something new in their work. It could be experimenting with new colors or new textures, or working on weaknesses in their work.

Thomas Pitilli and Mike Freiheit cite music as a big inspirational tool, while Jon Sperry likes to keep things quiet to allow ideas to develop.

Ryan Snook, Keith Negley, Joel Kimmel and Daniel Fishel look to art outside the illustration world for inspiration. Visiting museums or the bookstore can give you a nice perspective on things.

About Brian

Brian is an editorial and portrait illustrator. His clients include: Los Angeles Times, Billboard, Wired UK, The Washington Post, Fast Company, Games for Windows, The Boston Globe and USA Today. He lives in the Washington DC area with his wife, two daughters and a dog named Bill. BTillustration.com

Also take a look at Brian’s work on Altpick.com.

Check out more artists’ posts on The Lab and Agency Access.

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Culture Mix:: A visit with Veronica

Posted on May 7, 2012 by The Pick

Written by Italy Correspondent and Artist Carol Schultheiss in Cavallini.

Culture is a big playing field with lots of different aspects, Here in Italy, I love finding and exploring the overlaps. This one includes wine, design and a reclaimed quarry.

During the VinItaly Fair in Verona I met an engaging young woman, Veronica Tommasini. Her family has a vineyard and a new cantina in the hills northwest of, and overlooking, Verona. We met at an event where she received her Masters Degree diploma in Packaging and Wine Communications From the University of Verona

 I recently visited her at the family cantina.

We traveled up a winding narrow road with sharp turns where cars had to stop, half pulled into side roads, to let other cars pass, classic Italian countryside driving. We kept our eyes out for the name Piccoli and were almost ready to turn back, when; there it was, perched high on a hilltop. And what a surprise, the new and modern building with clean lines was built, inserted into the rock face of an abandoned quarry! Talk about recycling! They told me that the surrounding stone walls are also good for the aging wine; keeping it in nature and helping to maintain the stable temperature.

 The new cantina is the indicator of the family’s new activity. While they have long had vineyards, the grapes were sold to other producers. They have only recently entered into wine production; their first bottles came on the market in 2007. The business is small, producing a bit more than twenty thousand bottles a year. And this is where they want to be: a niche producer, creating special, quality products.

Back to Veronica. Her first love was/is design. She got her degree in design at NABA (Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti) in Milan, where she studied under the president, Alessandro Guerriero, a leading Italian figure in design and architecture. Her areas of interest were fashion, textiles and interior design. But after school, she got lured into running the commercial aspect of the families wine business. She hasn’t, however abandoned her design interests completely. She still finds ways to utilize her first love. She has designed the company’s logo, a rose design created as homage to her mother, the inspiring presence and name behind the cantina. She has also designed the wine tasting area. These rooms are frequently subterranean and almost always traditional; rock or brick vaults with massive wood details. Here the room is on the second floor with sweeping views of the hillside through the enormous glass windows. Veronica has chosen to create a clean white space with silvery details. The result is open and fresh and allows you to really see, examine the color of the wine in your glass.

The color of wine is very important to wine culture, and here there are creative surprises. One of these is their garnet (or rose petal) colored spumante. Created to support the other reds the cantina produces, Valpolicella and Amarone, it’s a tasty wine with an unusual and beautiful color. And it’s already in demand. While it’s suggested as an antipasto or pizza accompaniment, two local Japanese catering chefs have decided it is their preferred wine to serve with raw fish. The unusual festive color will clearly add to the spirited atmosphere of any occasion where it is served.

Another wine, a special mix has balsamic tones present. I was told that the pinewoods, bordering the part of the vineyard where those grapes grow, impart this flavor. I had no idea that perfumes carried on the wind could actually change the flavor of the grapes and the wine made from them. I thought it had to do with the soil. My respect for the complexity of wine creation as an art is growing.

So this was my outing: nature, design, recycling, something old, something new. Italian culture with its many facets and in the center, a modern Italian woman.

The wines, at this moment, are not exported to the USA, but you can go to the website below for a vicarious visit to the cantina and the hillsides outside Verona.

Photography by Carol Schultheiss in Cavallini.

Piccoli Wine: http://www.piccoliwine.it

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Duggal Works with Artist Jessica Lichtenstein for Scope Fair

Posted on May 2, 2012 by The Pick

Chessa Ferro at Duggal worked with artist Jessica Lichtenstein to create several pieces for Scope Art Fair and Gallery Nine5. Lichtenstein uses hyper-sexualized Japanese figurines in her work to entertain and give the figures a deeper meaning.

 

Duggal created lightboxes and large plexi pieces for the artist. For the plexi pieces, the prints were mounted to layers of custom cut, thick plexi and attached to a backer. The plexi pieces were laser cut to size with bevel edges and polished with diamond router bit. Plexi braces were adhered to the the plexi pieces (plexi to plexi bond is the strongest bond there is) to support close to 500 lbs. Check out the photos below!

To see more of Jessica’s work CLICK HERE

For more information about this project please e-mail Chessa Ferro at chessa@duggal.com.   See more artists’ work on Duggal’s website.

Written and photo credits by the Duggal Team

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Robert Carter’s ‘Tug of War’

Posted on April 27, 2012 by The Pick

Alberta Venture magazine  commissioned Robert Carter to illustrate the “tug of war” between the Alberta Provincial government and the Federal government regarding the oil sands and how they will be regulated. The piece was completely painted in PhotoShop CS5.  Kim Larson from Alberta Venture magazine was the art director.

Robert’s piece not only won 1st place in the Illustration Single category in The Altpick Awards, but also was selected for American Illustration 31.

Congratulations Robert!

To see more of Robert Carter’s work go to his Altpick page and his website.

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