Red Snow Bootprints
Long term Radiohead collaborator Stanley Donwood is set to exhibit a series of paintings he completed with Dr. Tchock (better known as Thom Yorke). Held art Barcelona’s Iguapop Gallery, the show – bouyantly titled Dead Children Playing – is the first time the pair have exhibited artwork together.
We hate to say it, but this is pretty bad from the start. But it’s not Johnny Cash’s fault. Featuring 36 famous faces from music and film, the new video accompanying the singer’s track, God’s Gonna Cut You Down, sadly backfires from celebrity overload. Intended as a montage of personal tributes to the Man in Black – which, on its own is a touching idea – the film actually comes across as more of an excercise in cool-by-association.
And rather than a heartfelt eulogy from those indebted to Cash’s music (and many artists featured in the film, of course, had an acknowledged debt to, or intimate friendship with the man) the film feels like a furthering of what’s slowly become, particularly since his death, Brand Cash.
Alan Fletcher as pictured in his final book, Picturing and Poeting, £24.95 / € 39.95, Phaidon 2006
The Design Museum was packed out with the great and good (plus CR) last night for the official opening of Alan Fletcher: Fifty years of graphic work (and play). Given the tragic circumstances, Fletcher having died little more than a month before, the evening was as much celebratory tribute as private view: a chance for the industry to show how much they loved and admired the man. Among those paying homage were Wim Crouwel, Bob Gill and, bizarrely, former quiz show host Bamber Gascoigne (anyone who knows his connection with Fletcher, please enlighten us).
Derek Birdsall gave a touching, if meandering speech and we all left clutching Quentin Newark’s beautiful show guide (the latter features biographical text from the exhibition alongside Peter Wood’s photographs of Fletcher’s gorgeous studio and is almost worth the admission money alone).
Of course the show is great – GTF’s design is respectful and understated while still providing some delightful touches (including a giant 3D Reuters logo) and Emily King cleverly paces the journey through Fletcher’s remarkable career. It’s all there: from the iconoclastic early years, through major corporate work at Pentagram to the exuberance of an independence secured late in life. But as with all great shows, Fletcher’s should be as much about influencing the future as documenting the past. It is the effect that the show will have on those who come to see it that will be as important as the joy of reviewing his triumphs. So here are some thoughts prompted by last night…
The irrrepressible Ze Frank on the all pervasive brand – and why Grandma’s Cookies sound so much more enticing than Old People’s Cookies (link: DO)
Look around your studio. How many of your fellow designers/creatives are sitting hunched over their Macs, headphones on, plugged into their own private world?
Whatever happened to conversation?
Anthony Lister, a Brisbane-based artist, makes his UK debut at London’s Spectrum Gallery next week. His show, Saturday Morning Prime Time, aligns the seemingly innocent world of children’s cartoons with that of power-hungry corporations vying for the attention of younger audiences.
Icelandic director Einar Baldvin’s animated video for Bonnie Prince Billy’s new single, Cold and Wet, is a bittersweet tale of mummy and daddy bears and what can happen when bear love dies. Just goes to show you should never trust a crocodile.
The results of this year’s Gunn Report are in, and suggest that creativity in the UK ad industry is alive and well, as UK agencies top both the Commercials and Print tables, and beat the USA to top the Countries table for the first time in eight years.
The report, which combines the winners’ lists from the most important global award shows to reveal the ads that have won the most each year, saw Abbott Mead Vickers.BBDO’s noitulovE spot for Guinness, directed by Daniel Kleinman, take the top spot in the Commercials table. The ad beat Fallon London’s Sony Balls spot and George Patterson Y&R Melbourne’s Big Ad for Carlton Draught Beer, which came second and third respectively.
As part of the Gap’s partnership with (Product) Red, a new AIDS–related charity, the company has produced Individuals, a collection of advertising campaigns past and present, the profits of which will go to the charity writes Tim Nelson. At $20 a copy, the book stands to make a sizeable contribution to this Bono/Bobby Shriver initiative to persuade US companies to help in the struggle to control AIDS and HIV in Africa. The Gap is also committed to donating half its profits from a new range of clothing to (Product) Red, but the aims of the book go beyond charity towards a continued promotion of the Gap, celebrity in America, and the national dream of success.
Domenic Lippa and Harry Pearce are the latest designers to join the exclusive Pentagram club: dissolving one partnership in the process, but joining another, more challenging collective.
Despite having only one oicial client, Channel 4’s in-house agency, 4 Creative, has built a reputation for consistently stunning advertising campaigns. By Eliza Williams
Remember when ads for petrol were a common sight on our TV screens? Esso’s Tiger? Reassurances that we could be sure of Shell? What with global warming and dodgy goings-on in the Third World, oil companies have been maintaining something of a lower profile of late, but a new BP campaign from Ogilvy London puts fuel back on the agenda.
One of the most respected and trusted awards for the advertising and design industries are back for 2025. Run, don’t walk to get your entries in before the Early Bird Deadline on 25 October
Growth is a dream for many businesses, but it comes with challenges. Daisy Crowder, brand and marketing director at design recruitment agency Craft, offers advice on how to navigate the change and keep staff on side
The Danish luxury fashion label has spearheaded the characterful evolution of Scandi style. Here, chief brand officer Priya Matadeen discusses its approach to collabs, the pressures of being a responsible brand, and how Ganni Girls grew from a hashtag to a badge of belonging
Brands are saying sorry at a more rapid rate than ever. CR’s advertising columnist Ben Kay delves into why sorry is no longer the hardest word and whether this is an effective strategy for winning audiences
By loosening its approach to advertising, and engaging with its audience directly, the drinks brand has transformed with the times and won a whole new set of fans
Kelly Grovier’s new book charts the artist’s persistent dialogue with classic and contemporary art
We speak to Lego’s VP of global brand development Alero Akuya about the brand’s rare ability to straddle the physical and virtual worlds with ease – whether through its immersive new art exhibition in Paris or collaborations with Epic Games and Nike
The Pentagram partner has created the titles for the acclaimed new Netflix show, which reimagines the Greek myths in a contemporary setting
A new book from Reel Art Press collates the first comprehensive history of film posters. We explore why they remain an underappreciated area of cultural design
Mark Sinclair talks to the artist and designer about his new book, Lost Ordinary Magic, and the importance of recognising the power of simplicity and the everyday wonders that surround us
We explore how the 90s, an era the UK looks favourably upon for its thriving culture, are continually inspiring a stagnated creative industry
The band’s surreal new album visuals explore a darker, more grotesque side of romance. We speak to the creative team behind the campaign about challenging the visual tropes of rock music