Ok, it’s not exactly design-related, but…

A successful rancher died and left everything to his devoted wife. She was a very good-looking woman and determined to keep the ranch, but knew very little about ranching, so she decided to place an ad in the newspaper for a ranch hand.

Two cowboys applied for the job. One was gay and the other a drunk.

She thought long and hard about it and, when no one else applied, she decided to hire the gay guy, figuring it would be safer to have him around the house than the drunk.

He proved to be a hard worker, who put in long hours every day and knew a lot about ranching.

For weeks, the two of them worked, and the ranch was doing very well. Then one day, the rancher’s widow said to the hired hand, ‘You have done a really good job, and the ranch looks great. You should go into town and kick up your heels.’ The hired hand readily agreed and went into town the following Saturday night.

One o’clock came, however, and he didn’t return. Two o’clock and no hired hand.  Finally he returned around two-thirty, and upon entering the room, he found the rancher’s widow sitting by the fireplace with a glass of wine, waiting for him. She quietly called him over to her.

‘Unbutton my blouse and take it off, she said softly. Trembling, he did as she directed. ‘Now take off my boots.’ He did as she asked, ever so slowly.

‘Now take off my socks.’ He removed each gently and placed them neatly by her boots.

‘Now take off my skirt.’ He slowly unbuttoned it, constantly watching her eyes in the fire light.

‘Now take off my bra.’

Again, with trembling hands, he did as he was told and dropped it to the floor. Then she looked at him and said, ‘If you ever wear my clothes into town again, you’re fired.’

Did you see that coming? How you write something can make all the difference… Jim G

Check out the Rowcroft Hospice Go Yellow page

I had a genuine double-take when I drove past this!

Advertising Agency: DDB London, UK  -  Creative Directors: Jeremy Craigen, Feargal Ballance, Grant Parker  -  Art Director: Victor Monclus  -  Copywriter: Will Lowe
Photographer: Sarah Maingot  -  Designer: Peter Mould

See more from the Marmite Advertising Campaign series here…

(Opinion: Jon Price – Designer)

See more pics from the series…

In the commercial design world there are a number of common ways of printing we’re all used to; offset litho, digital, flexo, etc… But what about printing in 3D – and running off body parts?!
I sounds far-fetched but ‘3D printers have been used in architectural schools for quite some time already (and self-replicating home models are becoming more and more common), a 3D food printer is under development, and now several sources are working on 3D bio-printers: machines that will “print” organs so patients will no longer have to wait for transplant donations. Recently, the first commercial organ printer was built by biomedical company Invetech and delivered to Organovo, a company that has pioneered the bioprinting technology.

The printer is already capable of producing arteries, which doctors will be able to use in bypass surgeries in as little as five years. Other, more complex body parts should be possible within ten years: bones and hearts, for example. The printer works by using two print heads. One lays down a scaffold and the other places human cells into the shape of whatever organ is being formed. There’s little threat of the new organ being rejected since it’s made of the patient’s
own cells.’ – Read more at Gajitz.

So what does this mean for the graphic design industry? Well, obviously it  means we’ll finally be able to send flesh bound books like the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis to print!

(Opinion: Jon Price – Graphic Designer)

Every year the residents of Inakadate, Aomori prefecture Japan work together to create giant figurative pictures by planting different varieties of rice. Folksy yet sophisticated, the many designs reproduce images from famous Ukiyo-e prints to The Mona Lisa! Make sure you see these – if you’re in any doubt of their legitimacy, here are some more images…

For further reading, see ‘The rise of Japanese rice-field art’ at guardian.co.uk see more images at tofugu.com and hemmy.net

(Opinion: Jon Price – Graphic Designer)

The recently launched Apple iPad may not instantly deliver the commercial impact of the iPhone, but it represents another important step towards the inevitable convergence of the personal computer and the publishing industry. Whether we like it or not, the way we design is going to change forever.

Before long, graphic designers (and photographers) will have to start working in a different way. Using devices such as the Apple iPad, the consumer will be able to access all kinds of ‘publication’ electronically – which will undoubtedly feature both still images and, increasingly, video content and animation. Not only is video more engaging, it is also easier and faster to consume – an important factor in today’s ever-busier society. Like it or not, most of us that don’t currently ‘do’ moving pictures are soon going to have to learn. (There are already professional cameras on the market, such as the Canon 7D, which can capture both stills and full HD video. This is no accident.)

Currently, many agencies deal with, say, press advertising entirely separately from digital, television and video; indeed clients often use a different agency for one than they do for another; but increasingly there’s a call for integrated campaigns and for agencies that can deliver value across multiple channels. Promotions are becoming multi-dimensional, which adds complexity (and an interesting challenge) for the agencies that dream them up. Ultimately the agencies that will gain an advantage are those that can become truly media agnostic – those that can combine static content with rich media and whose ideas can work across all types of platform.

It’s up to the design and photographic industries to embrace new technology and to guide their clients on this fascinating journey we’re all taking. Sure, this will mean investment and upskilling for many of us, but the benefit will be the ability to offer a more holistic approach to corporate communications and, with it, client retention and loyalty (not to mention how interesting all of our jobs will become!).

The iPad is another signal that the publishing and design industries are in the middle of a revolution.  We wait with bated breath to see where it will lead!

[Opinion: Paul Mabin - Creative Director]

Last week, after watching Shaun White win gold whilst nailing the Double McTwist 1260 (AKA the ‘Tomahawk’) on the snowboard half-pipe in Vancouver, I remembered the stylish promo animation for the BBC (seen above). The art style reminds me of early 1920s eastern european film, Frank Miller’s Sin City and the hatched illustrations of Edward Gory. For a more recent example of this 3d animation with 2d cel-shaded styling, take a look at Mad Word. It’s a great piece. A full motion picture in this style would be fantastic.

Having said that, I still love the Beijing 2008 BBC promo, ‘Meet Monkey‘, which was based on the classic Chinese tale, ‘Journey to the West’ and animated by those responsible for the Gorillaz music videos!

(Opinion: Jon Price – Graphic Designer)

2010/01 Michael Bierut from CreativeMornings on Vimeo.

A brand new talk from Pentagram’s Micheal Bierut on clients, the good and the bad.

(Opinion: Jon Price – Graphic Designer)

I saw two remarkably similar adverts from banks recently, both had building blocks on a beach in their national advertising. Above is an example of their campaigns – unfortunately I didn’t get a pic of the adverts in question. Coincidence, a new design trend, or the same agency running out of ideas? No, my guess… a mole deep under cover in their marketing team

As recently published in Design Week, you can play the Santander Red Brick Game for some lunch time fun.

(Opinion: Jon Price – Graphic Designer)