Here's what we wrote back then.
JR is creating an impact in the street space with such scale and imagination that it puts advertising to shame. His massive portraits are of inhabitants of Brazilian favelas, Parisian ghettos and Palestinian towns. He's a graffiti artist who picked up a camera and the results of his work are extraordinary. He has a show in London at the moment- the first two images are from there and the final image is from the favela project he did in Brazil. He's work blends the best in photography with graffiti and social causes.
Posted by Ed Cotton
Levi's new "work" campaign is being brought to life with a series of workshops around the country, the latest being a photography workshop in Wooster Street, New York.
The brand has been deliberately elastic with the idea of "work" allowing it to stretch from manual graft to the more creative avenues, like art and photography. There's no way Levi's wants to cut itself off from the cultural cache of the arts and go full bore into the blue collar arena.
The Wooster Street workshop is lavish, beautifully designed and well-thought out; combining elements of experience together with the practical means of letting people make and print. If it steers a little too much one way, it's too much of a 3-D billboard and not quite enough raw studio.
The other thing that's interesting is the location, it's Soho, but in the outer limits, so it's not in the mass tourist area, but it's easily accessible. This is understandable because there's a clear sense with this effort that Levi's wants its workshop to be seen.
However, you can't help but think the effort would be better placed, for obvious reasons in Brooklyn, Harlem or The Bronx.
On the plus side, you've got to commend a brand that goes beyond ads and actually facilitates creativity and action from its target and that's not an easy thing for marketers to grasp.
Real empowerment over implied, is a potent force for a brand and we can expect others to think how they might make their experiences, even "flat" pop-up stores, more engaging and participatory.
Posted by Ed Cotton
Ikea isn't a grocery store, so the idea of a cook book seems absurd, but when it's called "Homemade is Best", the idea makes a lot of sense. Great brands don't just tell people what they do, they elevate themselves onto a higher plane that transcends the rational world. In this case, Ikea isn't about furniture, but the bigger concept, Home.
It helps that the book is beautifully designed and has a very different take on typical food styling and photography- thanks to the photographs by Carl Kleiner and the styling by Evelina Brattel.
More here.
Posted by Ed Cotton
A couple of great examples:
Lomography is a company that's pushing and promoting the creativity of analog photography and doing a fantastic job.
They're set to open store no2 in NYC, very soon.
While technology is finding it's way into eating establishments- think iPads and flat screens, others are pushing more analog menu styles.
As spotted by Eater.
"...alot of casual counter service-style restaurants opt for chalkboard menus or printed boards above the kitchen or cash register. But in the past few months these movie theatre concession stand-style menus have popped up at cool-kid newcomers Pies 'n' Thighs, The Commodore, and M. Wells, either as the sole menu, or as decoration. It’s as much of an aesthetic choice as a practical one, and instantly communicates an old-school charm."
Further proof that it pays to think of trends as being bi-directional; for every strong theme, there's always a powerful counterpoint.
Posted by Ed Cotton
I caught up with Laura recently to learn more about Pictory.
1. Tell us a little about your background?
Before starting Pictory, I was editor-in-chief of JPG Magazine, an internationally distributed photography magazine. JPG's content was submitted by members of their online community and polished and edited into a magazine by the staff. Before JPG I was a print designer and actually started there designing the layouts.
2. What is Pictory?
Pictory is inspired by the Big Picture blog and This American Life. I founded it after JPG went under and try to incorporate some of the best things about print publications- custom typography, careful design and thorough editing- in a web format. I put up themes, for example "Overseas and Overwhelmed" and Pictory members respond with captioned photos. Some of my most popular ones are "The One Who Got Away" and New York City showcase ( a collaboration with Josh Haner of the new York Times)
3. Why do you think now is the time for photography on the web?
I have watched the web move very quickly to much larger images. It used to be that the standard was 500 pixel wide images on 800 pixel wide design. That seems really small now. For reference, the images on Pictory are 1000 pixel wide in a 1000 pixel wide design. So in that sense, yes, it's a better time than ever to enjoy photography on the web.
4. How do you feel the iPad is going to change that?
The iPad encourages you to curl up with content, so it creates a habitat for work that requires a longer attention span. Plus the care put into the details of the browser and the many apps makes using the iPad a visual treat in every way.(Check out Pictory on there!) And I've seen many professional photographers use it as a portable portfolio. I can't wait to see what's next in how people use this versatile tool.
5. You are about to run another camp for photographers, what's the purpose behind that?
I started Phoot Camp as a way to introduce some of the most talented photographers I knew through JPG. I figured the creative energy of getting 20 of them into the same place would be stunning. So people flew from all over the world to join me on a photo workshop of a woods of a state park. I'm running the invite-only event again this year, with Virb as an exclusive sponsor. Check out some of the images from last year.
6. Who inspires you in the photography and technology worlds?
I find Ze Frank's work really interesting and I love Andrew Zuckerman. I would say though being totally immersed in the tech world, I'm most inspired by documentarians like Studs Terkel, Michael Apted, Ira Glass, etc. i try to learn from their storytelling techniques and ability to reflect culture and common humanity.
(2) The role of the site is to help "clients" connect to a creative community and source the precise images they are looking for.
It's an alternative to the time consuming and expensive process of working with artists and the challenge of using a micro-stock agency.
Pixish also incorporates a voting feature that gets the community to vote on the images that best fit the assignment. The reward for artists is the opportunity to get their work published and there are also some prizes up for grabs.
Clearly this idea flies in the face of the established creative process and its unlikely that professionals are going to want any part of this.
The idea here is to level the playing field and let amateurs and young artists have a shot at the big time and build their portfolios. There are thousands of people out there willing to do this and its likely that the quality of their work is pretty good.
It's another example of the combination of the internet and the crowd weakening the power of the expert. We are just going to see more and more of this in the coming months and years.
Posted by Ed Cotton