Jump! Jump!

This is one of my all-time favourite photography books/projects (thanks to Delicious Industries for posting the shots up). I absolutely love the personality, joy and life in these shots, and how such a simple idea works so well.

The photographer, Philippe Halsman, was commissioned to take many portraits of the rich, famous and influential during the 1950s. At the end of each shoot, when the serious job was done, he would ask his subject to jump. Fabulous stuff.

The series is being exhibited for the first time, at the Lawrence Miller Gallery in New York (runs until 28th May).

"Marilyn Monroe, Brigitte Bardot, Salvador Dali, Weegee, Jack Dempsey and even the Duke and Duchess of Windsor agreed to take a leap of faith.  In that era of live television along with the popularity of the big glossy magazines, one’s image was not nearly as protected and shaped by handlers as it is today.  There was a feeling of innocence, a desire for spontaneity, and Halsman, with his playful and charming personality, knew he had to get almost everyone to oblige his demand:  JUMP!"

IKEA Domestic Policy

Brun kitchen

Kamerun kitchen

Kleggi kitchen

Those maverick Swedes, IKEA, are at it again. They've been having a little bit of fun in the run up to this years election. The three main party leaders have had a bespoke kitchen created, each of which has its own distinctive style to compliment and support their respective chief.

Find out more about items like the Kamerun Etontabl Bullindone, the Brun Granita and the Kleggi Toste here. Nicely done.

The Shepherd's Children

We recently completed this poster and DVD artwork for the short film The Shepherd's Children by director Toby Robson. Set in Newcastle, the film tells the story of a family in the grip of heroin addiction. Which is nice. It's started the festival circuit beginning at Cannes, so keep and eye out for it. Director Toby Robson also has feature length script of the film, which he's looking into the possibilities of making.

Pick Me Up

The 'Pick Me Up' contemporary graphic art fair is now on at Somerset House and by gum it's good. We quite literally wanted to pick everything up and take it home with us. There's some lovely work on display from tip top design talent, as well as a whole host of talks and workshops running throughout the course of the week.

To cap things off we spotted this cheeky Fentimans furtling card tacked up in Rob Ryan's studio set up there. Clearly a man of good taste.

Find out more about 'Pick Me Up' here.

Bill Bernbach Said #8

The eighth in our series of Bill Bernbach quotes...

“It's not just what you say that stirs people. It's the way that you say it.”

Click here for all the quotes so far.

ACDC vs. Ironman 2

This is amazing. Don't know much about it, apart from this little bit of info.

On the site of a thousand years of violent history, ACDC were pitted against Iron Man in a ground breaking architectural projection mapping project. The front facade of the Great Keep at Rochester Castle, was brought to life using the latest in 3D animation techniques. This onslaught of the senses, saw the castle confront it's ultimate challenge. Warping, morphing, spewing and collapsing before the audiences eyes. Let there be rock!

Andy Smith's Newspaper Extravaganza

It's always a pleasure to receive Andy Smith's excellent mailers. We're big fans of his work, plus they're always so lovingly produced. This is the latest, May Fade In Direct Sunlight - a collection of twelve posters on newsprint. Produced via the excellent Newspaper Club, buy, borrow or steal a copy if you can. Lovely stuff.

Print MissPrint

We were sent some smashing screen prints today from Print MissPrint. A top treat for a Friday!

The prints feature memorabilia that we'd love to get our mitts on, and each one comes wrapped in a misprint from the same series, hence the name. How lovely!

Take a gander at more in the MissPrint series here.

Bathhouse Boozy Bonanza

I'm not having it said for a minute that publicans are partly responsible for the state of affairs in binge-drinking Britain.

Hold on. What's that? A pint of Carlsberg, Fosters, Carling or Best Bitter for a couple of quid?

I'm off to the Bath House Boozy Bonanza to get 'em in.

Ash Related Disasters

It's been a while since we did a top 5 post. Too long, arguably. And in light of the current volcanic crisis going on in Iceland, most airports and a lot of hotel foyers across't land, we were suddenly inspired to do a top 5 other ash related disasters post. To liven the spirits and what not.

So in no particular order, here's what we've got...

1. The Lesley Ash trout pout.

2. The failed marriage and wanton ways of Ashley Cole.

3. Ash's albums between 1998 - present day.

4. Ashton Kutcher's affinity with twitter.

5. And Daisy, our email service provider (totally unrelated to ash, but totally shit, and currently down. A definite disaster).

Any more ash related disasters would be greatly welcomed good readers.

Bill Bernbach Said #7

The seventh in our series of Bill Bernbach quotes...

“You can turn a page and, before you really comprehend it, there's a feeling. There's a vibration. If it's the wrong vibration for what you want to convey, what follows is going to fight it - an uphill battle against the original impression you made.”

Click here for all the quotes so far.

Nailed 'Em. Fentimans On The Colbert Report

Long-time readers may remember the Houlton Gate, the furore in the small town in north-east USA where our client Fentimans' Victorian Lemonade was made illegal for sale to minors because of its trace alcohol content. It's now been covered on the Colbert Report, and worth a watch I think...

This is the response wot we rote for Fentimans at the time...

Bill Bernbach Said #6

The sixth in our series of Bill Bernbach quotes...

“There is no such thing as a good or bad ad in isolation. What is good at one moment is bad at another. Research can trap you into the past.”

Click here for all the quotes so far.

Japanese Ultra Monster Art

I found these via the delightful Rubbishcorp. Great stuff...

More here.

Bill Bernbach Said #5

The fifth in our (rather irregular as it turns out) series of Bill Bernbach quotes...

“Is creativity some obscure, esoteric art form? Not on your life. It's the most practical thing a businessman can employ.”

Click here for all the quotes so far.

World Cup Subbuteo print

Earlier today I spotted this great project from designer Ryan Tym, a limited edition print celebrating the forthcoming World Cup in South Africa. At first glance it looks a standard print but oh no, Ryan has sourced a small selection of old Subbuteo pitches and screen-printed onto them. As each of the pitches differs in age there's a nice variation in colour and design. Check out the vid below to see the guys over at Bob Eight Pop screen print them by hand. If you fancy one you'd best get in touch with Ryan asap.

Oh and here's some more Subbuteo goodness.

DDC on Flickr

We're big fans of the Draplin Design Co. We may have mentioned it before, but they do some top drawer work over in the States. We recently discovered their flickr account. And there's loads of great reference in there like the bits & bobs above. A good excuse to stick the kettle on and enjoy browsing with a cuppa.

Bill Bernbach Said #4

The fourth in the series of Bill Bernbach quotes...

“If your advertising goes unnoticed, everything else is academic.”

Click here for all the quotes so far.

Bill Bernbach Said #3

The third in the series of Bill Bernbach quotes...

“Properly practised creativity MUST result in greater sales more economically achieved. Properly practised creativity can lift your claims out of the swamp of sameness and make them accepted, believed, persuasive, urgent.”

(Even the great Mr B, godfather of the modern creative, was all about the sales.)

Click here for all the quotes so far.

Seafood Apostrophe Catastrophe

A sign-writing disaster. Unless of course the van actually belongs to the shellfish and crustaceans listed on the side of it.

Bill Bernbach Said #2

The second in the series of Bill Bernbach quotes...

“You can say the right thing about a product and nobody will listen. You've got to say it in such a way that people will feel it in their gut. Because if they don't feel it, nothing will happen.”

Click here for all the quotes so far.

The Bottle Cap Man

I found these fantastic bottle caps over on the Delicious Industries blog. From the Bottle Cap Man, run by Kenny Yohn, a guy with a massive collection of vintage bottle cap and crowns.

Bill Bernbach Said #1

A few years ago, I had the pleasure and luck of being introduced to the late, great Paul Arden by the smashing Roger Kennedy. It was fantastic to hear his thoughts and try to absorb a little bit of his obvious and massive experience. Anyway, at Paul's gallery in Petworth he had a poster that I think Roger had had done for him many years ago at a traditional hot metal letterpress. It's a vast collection of Bill Bernbach quotes, lovingly typeset, under the heading Bill Bernbach Said.

Extremely cheekily, I asked Paul if I could borrow it and have it copied. Being a generous and helpful man (and I think, liking the fact that I was cheeky enough to ask) he said I could. Bonanza. I took it and had it copied, and spent a very nervous few days while it was in my possession hoping nothing bad would happen to it. We now have the copy framed here at Sell! Towers, which is great for two reasons; one - I have fond memories of that time, and two, it's good just to wander up to the print and read different quotes now and again.

Even after all these years, BB's quotes still ring very true. So what I though I'd do is share one each day until I run out of them. I know they exist in different collections and in books and stuff, and that you've probably seen them a hundred times, but I thought it would be good to have them up here, in case anyone reading hadn't come across them before, and as a little reminder to those who have. And doing one every day will make me read them again.

So here’s Bill Bernbach Said #1...

“Rules are what the artist breaks; the memorable never emerged from a formula.”

Pixels By Patrick Jean

Cast your looking-gear over this very clever and superbly executed short film by Patrick Jean.

And I-I-I Weeeeell Alawayas Luuuuurve Yooooohooahooahoo!

When I read that this was an attempt by a contestant on a Chinese singing show to do Whitney's I Will Always Love You, this was not what I was expecting. At all.

The iPad: Will It Blend?

Long-time readers of this blog, as well being gluttons for punishment, will know that we are big fans of the Blendtec Will It Blend? campaign. The iPod Will It Blend? was one of their most popular films, so it stands to reason that with the launch of the iPad in the states, that would follow next. It doesn't disappoint - with the added bonus of Tom Dickson's great way of making it fit in the blender.

Labour's Competition-Winning Poster

This is the poster that was chosen as the winner of the Labour cloud-sourcing-crowd-sourcing-or-as-people-born-before-1985-with-a-hatred-of-bullshit-would-call-it, poster competition.

We know quite a lot of you are advertising/marketing/design professionals or students, so - what do you think?

PS There is a rather amusing/embarrassing video that accompanies it here, but don't let on that we sent you.

Straight 8 2010 Away

We've just sent over our entry for the 2010 Straight8 competition. Like last years critically unacclaimed effort, it was a challenge but great fun to do. Lets hope it comes out better than last year, so we don't have to get our mate Squa to save it. If you are creatively inclined and at all tempted, I'd encourage you to have a go next year, it's a steep learning curve but very fun to do something different.

Best of luck to everyone who entered.

Howdoos now on Etsy

You may remember a while back we posted up about these great Howdoos, from our talented friends at Delicious Industries.

They're basically hand-letterpressed business cards, with space on the back to write your details. Well you can now buy them (in packs of ten) in their new Etsy store.