Leo Burnett Rules!

One of Leo Burnett's famous speeches, “When to Take My Name Off the Door”, circa 1967.

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HMK

10 Principles

I love Frank Chimero's intro to his latest Aisle One piece, aptly titled 10 Principles That Might Make Your Work Better or May Make It Worse. (And Frank's illustration and design work rocks as well!)

"I hate the word “tip.” It implies that there’s something that you don’t know. Some secret little gem that, when sprinkled on your work, your creative process, your diet, or your sex life will magically make it all better. They promise to make all of it effervescent, and float above everything, defying gravity above all those poor folks who didn’t happen to stumble upon Dumbo’s magic feather like you did.

Tips are easy. And shallow. Principles, though, now that’s something worth talking about. If tips are puddles, principles can be oceans. They can be deep enough to hold intrepid adventures, yet tame enough to provide a significant bounty to nourish a creative life. They can serve as a north star and a rallying point. More than anything, they can be an inspiration. Sailors will always sing about the sea."

Nice.

My favorites are 9 and 10:

9) There is nothing keeping you from doing the sort of work that you wish.
What do you want? It’s a hard, yet crucial question. We all do creative work to get happy. It’s why we let it beat us up, and it’s why we keep crawling back to it. Figure out precisely what you want, and realize that if no one will pay you to make it, you can still make it for yourself. And you still win, because you’re happy.

10) Execute.
An idea on the page is worth 100x more than an idea in the mind. You can only judge and be judged by work that’s executed. Eventually, we all realize that most of the ideas that look great in our mind look dumb once they’re real. But, at least you now know.

Works for me!

Check out all: 10 Principles That Might Make Your Work Better or May Make It Worse.

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HMK

Tokyo Auto Show

Wow, these new rides are really making me miss my 1966 convertable VW Bug I sold back in 2000. Check out my two favorite electric cars and concepts from this year's Tokyo Auto Show thanks to the smart folks over at Wired.

The above Honda nails the retro vibe with it's update of the N360 from late ‘60s. Dig the EV-N. It's lithium-ion battery gets some juice from a rooftop solar panel. And I totally agree with Wired - Note to Honda: Build this car. Immediately.

And what's not to love about the wicked smart and utilitarian Basket. Pure and simple, both in name and concept, Basket from Daihatsu will definitely be at the top of my list if it becomes a reality.

Check out the other and way more futuristic concepts from Wired: Tokyo Auto Show.

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HMK

Idea Paint

Genius. Introducing Idea Paint, a paint that turns any paintable surface into a dry-erase board.


Half the cost of whiteboard and better-performing + you can leave marks up indefinitely, and they won't stain the wall.

I can't wait to try this!

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HMK

Think It. Ink It.

Creative thinkers such as Stefan Sagmeister, Paula Scher and Milton Glaser teach classes at the School of Visual Arts.

This campaign from KNARF NY reflects that tradition by encouraging people everywhere to “Think” while also giving them a place to write down their thoughts.

That's Write!

HMK

Thanks again Freddie.

Viva la Concept!

Nice. In a climate where budgets are being tightened and making every penny count is the law of the land, it seems the time is finally ripe for the truly inventive and creative to step up and make things happen. The days of overpaid, lackluster advertising agencies churning out nebulous, concept-free fluff are coming to an end.

The idea is back! Case in point - check out this awesome sign in front of this UK flower shop: "We're famous, find us on Google Maps".

What I really appreciate about this nice little piece of genius gorilla marketing is not just the brilliant use of Google maps and the fact that it's wicked simple and will work for just about any store or business, but I'm betting this is the brainchild of one smart and resourceful individual that's simply paying attention and not the result of a group of miserable ad hacks sitting around in a stuffy and uninspired conference room flipping through the latest CA annual during, yet another, forced "brainstorming" session.

Viva la Concept!

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HMK

Thanks to One Floor Up.

Concrete Floor Concept

Taking vector art to an entirely new level, Transperent House has just introduced a beautiful alternative to your basic sealed concrete flooring.

Contrasting the cold austerity of concrete, these floral designs are an awesome way to enhance any room. This design concept allows for the application of any pattern to the surface, either when pouring or afterwards when the concrete has set.

Very cool, and not just to the feet.

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HMK

Thanks to Yanko Design.

Elastico Bookshelf

You gotta love this book shelf concept by Arianna Vivenzio. I found the original post over at Unwritten Doctrine via the awesome Swiss Miss, but I hit a deadend in regard to finding more info. Stay tuned and I'll let you know as soon as I do.

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HMK

Ugly Beauty

“I ALWAYS wanted to own a dream car,” said Andy Saunders, 44, who has a flair for customizing cars. “But others had already bought all the dream cars.”

So Mr. Saunders settled, instead, for a nightmare.

“I remember one day going through a book about dream cars, and I saw a tiny drawing, a sketch really, or artist’s impression of a car called the Aurora,” Mr. Saunders said in a telephone interview. “My dad commented, ‘Have you ever seen anything so ugly?’ He was right; it was so ugly it was unreal. I said straightaway, ‘I’ve got to own that.’”

Mr. Saunders, who operates an auto importing and customizing business near his home in England, said he enjoyed a challenge. He has worked on cars that include a Lancia and a Cord.

He saw the image of the Aurora in 1993, and it took him several years of detective work to find what happened to the car.

The Aurora may have had the most unusual pedigree in the history of the auto industry. It was created in the mid-1950s by a Catholic priest, Alfred A. Juliano, and partly bankrolled by parishioners of his church in Branford, Connecticut.

Juliano wanted to create the world’s safest automobile, and his Aurora featured innovations that were years ahead of their time. The Aurora also had many wacky ideas to go along with its bizarre styling. Some auto historians have called it the ugliest car ever made.

Although Mr. Saunders originally agreed, he has come to see beauty in the Aurora.



Designer Priest Alfred A. Juliano.

Juliano, who studied art, said he always wanted to design cars, even as he studied to join the priesthood. Published reports said he entered competitions for aspiring auto stylists, including one sponsored by General Motors. Juliano’s family said G.M. offered him a scholarship to study with the legendary designer Harley Earl, but he said the offer came just after he had been ordained a priest.

Juliano continued to be fascinated with cars and their design. He also believed that most cars were unsafe, and began a quest to design a car that addressed his laundry list of safety issues. His solutions were novel, to say the least.

Read the rest of Jerry Garrett's article over at: Ugly Car.

Personally I think Father Juliano's concept car is one of the sickest rides I've ever laid eyes on - it's perfectly awesome! I'd love nothing more than to be driving my little family around listening to A Holly Jolly Mystery Stream and checking out this year's perfect Christmas moon!

Happy Holidays and God Bless!

Peace,

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HMK

Selling A Concept With A Song

Here's a cool article about developers in New York saying they're better able to convey the vibe of a particular building by commissioning or licensing (or illegally using) music for their Web sites and sales offices.

The concept of using music as an effective way to announce a building’s intended demographic without ever saying a word is a great idea.

“Certain types of people generally have an affinity for one type of music more than another,” said Shaun Osher, the chief executive of CORE Group Marketing, which has worked on a number of music-infused campaigns.

Read the rest over at The New York Times Real Estate Section.

I'm doing the same sort of thing with the covers of my weekly HMK Mystery Stream podcasts.

Click Hear if you're interested in what the above illustration sounds like...

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HMK

DO NOT CLICK!

Recently Sited

Can you spot the theme in these three smart ads? I love the simplicity of the set up with the ''punch line" and payoff consisting of just a line of copy and the logo. Nice stuff.

That's Right,

HMK