Kinetic Art

Link via Kottke.

Visually, it is rather inspiring (although BMW piggy-backing on this is really annoying, albeit the obvious metaphor). Kinetic art has existed for a long time now, although its modifications over time and with the advent of newer technologies is quite amazing and as the ad emphasizes it, blurs the line between engineering and art.

Basically involving any art that involves motion (and motion is a term used rather loosely at times, if you’ve seen some kinetic sculptures), the most familiar and oldest of the kinetic arts we know of is none other than the mobile, which is moved in the wind. Other examples are engineered sculptures with moving parts, or even pieces that utilize optical illusions. Kinetic art is especially amazing in its ability to maintain consistent balance and motion.

Perhaps the most famous kinetic artist is Alexander Calder, who was creating his motorized pieces that would move on windpower back in the 1930s. But it really became a huge phenomenon in the late ’50s all the way to the ’70s.

There are several websites out on the many kinetic artists, like KAO and Kineticus. But if you prefer play, there’s one simulated kinetic art site that I like to visit: Soda. Some of its most fun projects that really play with movement are the Interactive BAFTA award-winning Sodaconstructor and Moovl.

Lesley Mobo: Looking towards the Future of Fashion Design

Because I’m fortunate to have a brilliant editor, who has given me the opportunity to profile some remarkable individuals, I was able to have not one, but two interviews with one of the most brilliant young designers today (who also happens to be Filipino), Lesley Mobo.

If you look his name up on the internet, you’ll get a number of articles that’ll trace his history from his humble beginnings in Aklan, to his struggles studying a full undergraduate course in Central St. Martins (which he paid for by himself without the help of any scholarships whatsoever), to his eventual success in attaining the Diesel Award in International Talent Support, to his current commercial work with Harrod’s as well as his personal efforts to create what he calls “directional” pieces in developing his own line.

Last year, I had an email interview with him, which gave me a first glimpse into that fascinating mind and the principles and philosophies that influence his design process. This year, he came back to the Philippines for a special project with Absolut Vodka, which went on tour through Asia. In this interview specific to the Absolut event, there were marked changes in Lesley’s thoughts and musings, although there was one particular point that remained the same: the importance of creating directional pieces.

Of all decades of fashion, this latest one is perhaps the most undefined. There were looks that characterized each decade or even era past, yet in this present time what we constantly see on the runway are reinventions–’60s inspired or ’20s inspired. There is little or not enough effort to create something defining and directional. “We young designers need to deliver something to define our time,” Lesley says. “We know about what has been done in the past, and now we need to look forward in design. We need to create something truly directional.”

It’s easier said than done, of course. And Lesley of all people will acknowledge that. And it’s tough on most designers because of the constant demand to come up with a new collection each season: you don’t really have the time to think over directional items.

I have here my (rather lengthy) article on Lesley’s design direction and Absolut Vodka project, which came out in the Bulletin not too long ago. Since I couldn’t find the final edited interview from last year, I dug up the email reply that Lesley made, dividing it into two articles: one about his experience in London and a stream of consciousness discourse on the importance of establishing a Filipino identity in design.

Lesley is insightful and just brilliant, and it was really interesting to read his email interview, which gave you the feeling that he was typing as fast as he could to catch up with his thoughts. (Hence we added formatting to the text before running it in the paper.) His words offer a wealth of information and force anyone who works in a creative role to think carefully about design philosophy and the language on which their works are built. It is not about negating other design processes or invalidating other priorities, rather, it is about possibly including these ideas for the long haul, and considering if it is something that one may personally deem important.

Here’s the latest article on Absolut Vodka, which appeared June 30, 2006 in the i section of the Manila Bulletin. Here’s the interview on London Fashion. Here’s the interview on Filipino designers. The latter two appeared last year in the i section of the Manila Bulletin.

Photos here and in all the linked articles courtesy of Lesley Mobo or Absolut Vodka. Additional photos swiped/borrowed/seen on Catwalking, which is one of the best sites for fashion editorial images.

Innovative advertising

Pole Position. The first one on the left features a knotted lamppost image and was created for the Superman Returns movie. The second one on the right was created for the StringFellows strip club in France, catching attention with the momentary illusion of woman dancing on poles. If I’m not mistake, both ads were from France. (via Cool Hunter and Billboardom)

The impact of advertising now goes beyond selling or promoting a product (although that nonetheless remains its main pursuit), and guided by marketing and branding techniques that create whole concepts and implications around what’s being promoted (i.e. you’re not selling a shoe, you’re selling a lifestyle), it is powerful medium for creating content that, truth be told, is not exploited as much as it can be.

(Obviously, I can’t quite include the Philippines in explaining the extent to which advertising and branding is used, since the sensibilities of the Philippine market is a totally different case and deserving of a totally separate discussion, and the monopoly of companies over certain industries totals fizzles out the competition that creates the initial need for competitiveness and creativity in branding and advertising that exists in other countries.)

The first thing you’d probably think of when you sat innovative or radical advertising is, of course, none other than United Colors of Benetton’s Oliviero Toscani, who was infamous for his socio-political UCB ads featuring subjects such as dying Aids victim David Kirby, or an African guerrilla holding a Kalachnikov and a human bone, or a group of African refugees, or two Indians in a flood in Calcutta, etc. He stood by the philosophy that, in creating ads, he was “…not here to sell pullovers, but to promote an image…” and promote certain values and owned up to a certain social responsibility. While there are differing opinions on everything from the ethics to the effectivity of the campaign, one thing’s for sure, it evoked an emotional response.

Advertising today needs to go the extra mile to evoke any kind of response from its viewers, partly because it’s a highly saturated market and, let’s face it, partly because the products being promoted are practically redundant in their numbers. Apart from being convinced that we want what they’re selling, we need to have our attention piqued first. So in the advertiser’s never-ending quest for how they can get us buzzing about their product, they try to create ads that at least get us buzzing about their ingenuity, humor, etc. I discussed a number of design-advertising ideas in a previous post, under the very specific type of branding that utilizes brand spaces, now here are a few other alternative ads that have been around for some time now. They go the extra mile to merit a second glance and drive home a point. (For our purposes, this doesn’t encompass internet advertising, which deserves its own space altogether.)

eBay Belgium. Certainly eBay has a sense of humor (although I don’t know if any closed-down stores are laughing), but these guerilla ad campaigns certainly hit the mark. The ad campaign basically consisted of placing crude stickers that read “Moved to eBay” on closed-down store windows in the busy shopping district, effectively suggesting that people go check for products on eBay instead. Mortierbrigade won the Bronze Lion at the Cannes International Advertising Festival for creating the campaign for eBay, and then they put it up for sale–where else?-on eBay. (via Cool Hunter)

Coffee and a fake nose. DDB Canada created this ad campaign called Nose Cup, which basically fits a new nose image over you while you take your cup of coffee. While you won’t exactly be able to see yourself with a new attachment, it’s cunning enough to attrach other people’s attention. (via Cool Hunter)

Interactive bra. Wonderbra created an ad that couldn’t be any more direct, or any more entertaining. I wonder who enjoys these kinds of interactive ads better, men or women? (via Cool Hunter)

Book Bench. In Istanbul, there are benches that are made to resemble open books. The book features 18 Turkish poets. I can’t seem to find much info on the back story of this ad. Maybe it’s really advocacy. Maybe finally somebody took the decline in reading seriously. (via It’s All Good)

Stepping into the subway. Kinda reminds you about those clowns piling into a car, doesn’t it? Created by Jung von Matt for the Mini Cooper, it’s a graphic of a car placed strategically in front of a Subway entrance, so people actually look like they’re ducking into a car. (via Gush)

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On the subject of radical ads, one internet ad campaign really stuck out. (Yes, yes, I said I wasn’t going there, but this is special circumstance. You’ll see.) Shai is a clothing brand that’s pushing the whole “sex sells” bit to an extreme. Their new ad campaign–the SexPacking catalog–uses hardcore porn videos distributed through the SexPacking wesbsite. When I read the posts about it on marketing trend sites, I didn’t pay attention initially because I thought the reports were exaggerated. But by the time I got to the fouth or fifth site posting it, I had to check it out for myself. And I got the surprise of my life when I saw it.

It’s certainly done better than most regular porn, with good shots and editing done well against the music. But I have to wonder how effective this is as a clothing ad campaign. I guess the rauchy image is expected to push the image originally made by the likes of Guess, Miss Sixty, etc. that explore that darker urban decadence. I just wonder if they didn’t cross the line. But then, this is fashion, so what are the chances of that?

The videos are encouraged to be spread on the net, with Blog This! links on each of the individual pages, encouraging word-of-mouth marketing (which can be a very effective tool). No such chanc here, though. But go right ahead and check them all out on Shai site.

Stress relief: Animal post of the day

While I haven’t gotten any more interesting (read: unnerving or at least strange) animal facts to post, I’ve got to link to these sites that feature a more adorable side of animals. If you’re as much an cuddly animal fan as I am, you’ll love these images that range from baby animals to generally cute and cuddly animals.

Short aside: Our adopted female (formerly stray) cats have been quite the babymakers, because we haven’t gotten around to bringing them to the vet to get it over and done with, so we’ve have a relatively regular cycle of adorable kittens coming into our lives and then growing up to be stuck-up spoiled little brats with a huge sense of entitlement (We still love them though, poop-scooping suckers that we are.)

Two sites I’ve found through the Time.com’s list of 50 Coolest Websites are particularly heartwarming: Baby Animalz and Pandafix. Baby Animalz features a whole gallery of, well, baby animals either posted by the site moderators or submitted by viewers. Some animals I can’t even identify because they look so odd (but still cute), although most of them would make great greeting card covers, or at least Animal Planet poster faces.

The site has also posted a “haters” section with a funny little bit on having to defend themselves from detractors. It’s a little cheeseball, but it got me laughing.

The other site I visit is Pandafix, which not only posts regular panda photos and linksto panda resources (like other zoos and sanctuaries) but also interesting panda facts and other panda-related information. (For example, one of its earliest posts mention the panda logo for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Stuff like that.)

All photos are from Baby Animalz and Pandafix.

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Still in relation to animals and all things adorable, one of my favorite satire sites The Onion has this hilarious headline:

You just have to laugh at that.

Retro tees and then some

T-shirts have been the staple of street fashion since the early 20th century. One version of history has it that they originated from World War I, when people took notice of the cotton shirts being worn under their uniforms and then adapted it themselves as a standard underwear. In the ’50s, Movie stars like James Dean wore the t-shirts by themselves or under open button down shirts, thereby creating a new way of wearing tees that quickly caught on. And the rest, as they say, is history. (And even more history.)

I’m addicted to graphic tees, especially with the great styles from Philippine brands like ArtWork, which now carry a whole range of retro tees, or stores like American Boulevard, which carry a lot of the vintage tees from foreign brands, and custom-made t-shirt stores, where you can play with everything from graphic design to stitching to pockets to beadings and whatever else you may want to add.

Online, however, there are also a great selection to choose from. One of the most easily accessible sites is T-Shirts.com, which by virtue of its web address has made it one of the top online stores for tees. A really good selection they have is under the Madbar category, which hosts a whole range of graphic tees, from the more basic, bold prints to full-blown illustrations.

Another great place to hunt for retro or vintage t-shirts is at ’80sTees.com, which hosts not only totally cool retro tees that cover pop culture icons from cartoons, television, movies, and music, but also a tees in retro fashion that feature current icons. I love cartoons so my bias will always be to the cartoons of the ’80s, and t-shirts that read “He-Man is the Coolest” totally kicks ass in my book. Another interesting shirt is the Edward Scissorhands tee, with Johnny Depp’s face repeated four times in different colors ala Andy Warhol.

A little more feminine, these “girly tees” feature cartoons like Care Bears, My Little Pony, and Jem, among other ’80s hits, and retro versions of comicbook superheroes like Wonder Woman in a markedly feminist message, and not to forget bands like the Go-Go’s (perhaps in contrast to all the Led Zepp and Lynnard Skynnard shirts).

And one more great find (at least for me) from ‘80Tees.com is the selection of My Name is Earl shirts! Two feature Earl with the standard karma message, and one feature my favorite bitch, Joy.

Designer labels, of course, have long cashed in on the trend of the tees, although for our pusposes, we’ll leave that fpr another time and stick to these other less glitzy, less pricey fashon options.

Fashion branding against the grain

While reading Mark Tungate’s book, Fashion Brands, I caught a part of a chapter that dealt with unexpected branding subversions by consumers. Basically, it mentioned how, throughout the history of fashions, there would always be certain consumers who would disregard the specific image of brand and adapt it to their personal style, which may not necessarily fit in with the image of that brand. Oddly enough, some of it are occasions when, for the sake of branding, certain labels seem to actually want to doscurage certain consumers from wearing their products.

Tungate cites Dr. Martens, for example, whose boots were adopted by the skinheads and street gangs early on. And Burberry, whose iconic check pattern has become associated with the “chavs” of Britain, which refers to a group of “downmarket consumers” and has been defined by Chavscum.co.uk “Britain’s peasant underclass.” It, of course, goes against Burburry’s image as a luxury brand, at least in Britain, although Burberry is still seen as a prestigious brand in the rest of world, which is a large market.

Lacoste has had a similar occurence, with its signature polo shirt “hijacked” by French hip hop fans. Lacoste eventually used it to its advantage, who did not try to blatantly target the youth culture (because then that would have the reverse effect of alienating them again), but evolved to better accommodate these consumers in a subtle and still effective way.

As a final note on the subject matter, Tungate also mentions that there are reports on Dior intending to drop some of its less expensive products because they were being worn by teen girls from the less exclusive parts of Paris. Dior simply didn’t want to lose its image of exclusivity.

Branding and marketing is such a large part of fashion (although embracing it is not the sole element in fashion success, as proved by the likes of Pierre Cardin). And, of course, branding is radically different depending on the market of fashion being served. It is quite interesting how luxury brands, given their expensive prices and very limited market, want to keep it that way and are very wary about any changes in image, even over these highly fickle time, when the more commercial brands are scrambling to keep up with the trends and the changing tastes of its consumers.

Running completely opposite to luxury brands, commercial brands try to hit as large a market as they can get, which is why they often aim at a larger psychographic rather than a specific demographic. Again, image is everything here, because a carefully crafted image can reach the primary target market as well as the all-important aspirational market (although in the Philippines you run the risk of getting you knock-offs more buiness that you do). Price is important, but image is far more important.

A New Yorker article by Malcolm Gladwell discussed the success of Dockers. Early on, it sought to target the baby boomer generation of men, with ads that zoned in on their desires and things that they wished to have but did not because of the material and social circumstance of their generation. The ads showed men in those khaki Dockers enjoying each other’s company in an informal gathering–a rare luxury for these men whose lives were always about working hard and providing for their families. Snatches of conversation could be heard from the men, all of which touched on issues and hopes and desires and dreams of this particular generation of men. The ads hit home and hit hard. And Dockers became a huge success.

One other story of image that I recall is that of Nike, which was from an unofficial history. Back in the day, Adidas was the official brand of NBA, supplying regulation white shoes to its players, while Nike was the rebel brand. Nike grabbed public attention with the Air Jordan, one of the most iconic and famous—or infamous—shoes on the planet. They were the first to ever offer a basketball player his own shoe, and Nike played the real rebel when Jordan wore then colored Air Jordans on the court, back when the NBA had ruled for players to be in uniform white kicks. Of course, Jordan got fined, but instead of backing down, Nike simply paid up and had Jordan keep wearing his shoes. It was an image of rebellion that appealed to the youth. In the end, the controversy made people take notice, and the shoe sales skyrocketed. And, of course, when Jordan’s career took off, so did the shoes. Today, Nike is the choice brand for basketball and hip hop culture, and it’s said that it’s actually the preferred brand of drug dealers and gangs. That’s real world branding for you.

For more information on Chavs, check out Chavscum.com. And for more images of Air Jordans throughout history, go to The Air Jordan Line. Incidentally, I borrowed/yanked/stole my images from those sites and they deserve credit.

Cool Custom Choppers and Blinged-Out Bikes

Always wanted a Harley, though common sense tells me it’ll get stolen in the Philippines before I even get it out my garage door. In any case, I’ve always been quite fond of bikes, especially choppers and vintage bikes, although I’d much prefer to have a sport-tourer like the BMW R1100S, since I’ve wanted to try going on a road trip (ala Zen and the Art of Motorcyle Maintenance) and be comfortable but not have to ride those bulky-looking touring bikes.

Anyway, for awhile now, I’ve been hooked on Discovery Channel’s show American Chopper, which, as any self-respecting motorcycle enthusiast knows, is a “reality show” following the custom chopper projects of the Orange County Choppers.

Run by the Teutul father-son team Paul Sr., a 30-year veteran of metalworks with a taste for old-school bikes, and Paul Jr. (or Paulie), the considerably more laid back artist of the family who handles theme bike projects alongside his father, OCC is an often inspiring and always hilarious place to be. Throw in the occasional comic relief from blond, frizzy haired younger Teutul, Mikey, who always gets on everyone’s nerves because of his sarcasm (if it’s sarcasm) and side-comments. He usually does administrative work, but when he tries to pitch in, all hell usually breaks loose. It’s just fun to watch them go at each other’s necks, mostly because of differences in the way they work, and of course it’s always interesting to see how they develop their theme bikes from concept to finished product.

An interesting episode of the show was aired today in Discovery Channel Asia, which was actually the 4th Season Opener aired a couple of months back in the US, featuring the Teutul family vacation in Europe. They go sightseeing through England, France and even Scotland–and in Scotland you get to see tattooed and muscle-bound Paul Sr. in a red tank and Scottish kilts riding a SCOOTER! That’s as good as it gets.

They also met up with Ewan McGregor in London (which got the giddy Moulin Rouge fan in me squeaking for joy), and it turns out that they were friends. I knew Ewan was a motorcycle enthusiast, and had even written a book, Long Way Round, with long-time friend and fellow actor and motorcycle enthusiast Charley Boorman about their road trip across the world. I’d totally forgotten that the Teutuls were mentioned in their book, and I think even featured on the corresponding TV/DVD feature. Ewan drove up in a wonderful old ‘69 BSA and takes the family to the Brookland Museum, which preserves a lot of old British bikes and their history in racing. It’s a nod to the big vintage bike scene of Britain.

(Someone even put up a YouTube video on that segment of the episode!)

The episode is fun to watch, and between dealing with “snobby” French people and visiting the dungeons of London, it’s just pure entertainment. Can’t wait to get back to the bikes (and the usual petty squabbles), though. OCC bikes are tricked out and great eye-candy. Like so:

Mikey Bike. Yup, supposedly Mikey’s bike, but handled by Paulie. So you can imagine how that bike went down.

Black Widow Bike. The show-opener, this bike reflects their obsession with spiders. Spiderman would kill for this ride.

P.O.W. Bike. Paul Sr.’s creation, this bike features details like name etchings similar to that on the black wall of the Vietnam Memorial, and silhouettes from the P.O.W. poster graphic on several parts of the bike. This one needs detail shots to be fully appreciated.

Check out more OCC show theme bikes at the OCC Website. Images from OCC and American Chopper.

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On the subject of bikes, I’ve been fascinated lately with concept bikes–bikes which are not yet mass-produced and may never be mass-produced but feature some hot designs and amazing features that make you wonder why they’re not out on the market yet. (Of course, on the flipside, there are several issues with it that make you wonder why these were even invented in the first place.) Check out these models:

Dodge Tomahawk. Created to emphasize the brand’s powerful image, the Viper-strength Tomahawk runs on the same 500 hp 8.3 litre V-10 engine, which, in theory, should allow the bike to go up to 300 mph. Priced at $555,000 each, however, these motorcycles also aren’t permitted on public roads.

Victory Vision 800. Made to show off radical design thinking, the Victory Vision 800 is considered a true concept bike that totally blew the lid off bike design. This creation by the boutique manufacturer has an 800cc 4-stroke liquid-cooled parallel twin, constantly variable transmission and a very different yet apparently quite acceptable and practical design.

There’s a great list of concept bikes (among other concept products) at Diseno-art.com and scattered information in blogs like Gizmodo, Gizmag, and Engadget, among others.

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That’s Hot!

Not that I’m a fan of hers, but I can’t resist anything pink, and anyone who knows anything about motorbikes knows that late last year socialite Paris Hilton got her own custom-made $250,000 chopper encrusted with Swarovski crystals, courtesy of the Beverly Hills Choppers (who are very well vying for the kind of stardom afforded to Orange County Choppers).

It sports about 100,000 Swarovski crystals, some of which spell out the name Paris on the tank, and a custom pink paint job, and took six months to complete. The Car Connection Confidential blog reports a 6.0HP two-stroke engine, so it’s a fairly slow bike (“fast enough to avoid paparazzi on foot, slow enough to not miss a single storefront on Rodeo Drive” says TCC Confidential) and obviously more glitzy than practical (or did the Svarowskis give that away?). In addition, the tank cap even doubles as a compact mirror.

GPS Review notes that the bike also has a jewel-encrusted TomTom Rider GPS installed. It’s a great consumer-friendly device, which I liken to Nokia phones for their interface that merges technology and ease of use to make navigating a piece of cake. Top tech that’s also dummy-proof, it has an intuitive, glove-friendly and anti-glare touchscreen, and has cool features like 3D road mapping and Bluetooth convergence to facilitate voice instructions and even cellphone calls. (Read more about TomTom Rider here.)

I can’t quite imagine the use of this bike, given its extremely limited basics and then its conversely exaggerated add-ons. (How much directional equipment does one need to get around Beverly Hills?) Of course, the coat of Swarovskis pretty much limits its usage, and there really isn’t enough compartment space for credit cards, cellphones, make up kits, new pets, etc. In any case, I suppose it works as far as concept bikes go, since it’s made to fit the profile of the owner (I’m tempted to fill in the adjectives, but I won’t).

The pink bling bike was said to have been given to Paris after she made a passing comment that she wanted her own motorbike. Along with the bike, Paris was also presented with matching Swarovski crystal-covered riding shoes, helmet and a one-of-a-kind Beverly Hills Angels jacket.

Images from Beverly Hills Choppers and GPS Review.

Talking about Animation

ArtFarm is organizing a by-invitation forum this week, to be attended by film and advertising people, both veterans in the industry as well as a roster of really amazing young talent who have done great work both commercially and on independent projects.

Hosting the event is a top member of the Film Development Board of the Philippines, and heading the panel discussion is none other than director Mark Meily. Now special guest (and the reason this all got organized in the first place) is Filipino animator Ronnie del Carmen, who is currently Head of Story at Pixar.

While the discussion aims to cover everything from storytelling to industry issues (with special emphasis on the US model and its correlation to local filmmakers), it is important to note that it is not a place for bitching and airing grievances. It is clear that all attendants, both from the commericial and independent sides, are all aware of the state of the local industry, although how they choose to cope and profit from it differs. Fortunately, with our set of moderators, discussions should not get out of hand.

I’ll be doing an exclusive story, and I’ll run details here at a later date.

In the meantime, check out Ronnie del Carmen’s blog or his website, because there’s a fairly good chance you’ll pick up something from him.

NOT What You Think: Orgasm or Really Good Marinara?

This is just way too much fun. Men.style.com has a (really funny) feature  that shows cropped photos of people either from the Food Network or porn flicks, and you have to figure out which is which. If I just didn’t know recognize of the people from Food Network, I probably would’ve thought they were in from the other group.

See for yourself if you can figure it out. No fair if you’re a Food Network junkie. Check it out here.

Via Kottke.org.

Dr. Martens Beautiful Boots!

Liz Collins. “In my typical deconstruct-reconstruct fashion, I slashed these cherry red Docs all over the ankles and toes with an exacto knife, so I would have a web of leather slices that I could then weave into with yarn. Then I attached the yarn from the boots to the knitting machine and knitted stockings and shorts. So you can put on your Docs and transform your entire bottom half into a punk rock princess.”

Dr. Martens has had their gorgeous special collection of 1.4.60 boots for quite awhile now, but for those who still haven’t heard of then, they are gorgeous remakes of the original 1.4.60 by British and international designers based on the history of Dr. Martens, and of course the individual tastes of the designers. There are some more classic styles like Frank Leder’s “German army” boot, and some more far-out designs like Michael Milloy’s “prosthetic” boot.

Originally built for the working man, with its famous yellow stitching and two-toned grooved sole, the boot was later adapted as a fashionable youth symbol and became a favorite among cultural renegades. Some musical greats who have lent their names to the boot include Lent names The Who, Sex Pistols, The Clash, Madness, The Cure, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, and No Doubt, among others.

Check out my rundown of my favorite 1.4.60 boots.