There is a better way to experience volcanoes
Ad concept for New Zealand Tourism which was proposed to run the morning of the volcanic ash story on the SMH story.
Funny dunny ad campaign
We were driving home from the Easter show when out of the window I saw this gem (although less pixelated and darker in real life):
Because the others in the car missed it the driver turned around and we drove back for a closer look. At one point the car was 50/50 split on whether or not it was legit, with one person pointing out it would be a lot of money to spend on a glorified post-it-note. I gave my “professional” opinion that it must be part of a bigger ad campaign because every art director dreams of putting comic sans in a billboard just to give the shits to every graphic designer that drives past.
Looks like we were right.
Mumbrella confirms it’s an ad for the Red Cross’ new facebook app urging people to challenge their friends “for the love of humanity”.
What i would do if i was rich
A generation ago the most pressing question humanity could ask was what is the meaning of life? Now that we know the answer to that our culture has a new important question, what would you do if you were a millionaire. So here is my answer, open a museum. Budgeted to leave some change for the cliché charities and investments, here are the details:
An almost complete T-Rex skeleton named Samson failed to reach it’s reserve price at Auction in 2009. For 4mil I could probably seal the deal, perfect for the foyer!
At twice the size of a T-Rex, Robosaraus would make a perfect addition to my dinosaur collection. He can eat cars and planes and breathes fire and yet only sold for half a million in 2008. Going to see him at the Sydney Easter Show this week, quite exciting.
Of course I will need somewhere to store my budding Jurasic Park and I have always dreamed of owning an island. Lucky for me Plum Island off Long Island, New York is up for sale. It’s going cheap too because of the whole animal disease research they do there which means the whole place may be contaminated. On the up side it’s got a pretty lighthouse and weird creatures often wash up on the shores.
With the rest of the money I would buy all the paintings I love and maybe hire some cassowaries and to roam the grounds. Any other suggestions for what to put in my museum?
Chocolate animals #easter
Yay for the resurrected (or zombie depending on your beliefs) Jesus!
And thank you God for inventing chocolate, of which I have been given so much this year, mostly in animal form.
The best thing about this Easter is I got to meet the real life versions of all the chocolate animals I got! We saw a duck at #gardenpicnic on Friday and a wombat, bunny and bilby at Featherdale Wildlife Park on Saturday.
The excitement continues with Wicked tonight and the Easter show on Thursday. I am really looking forward to seeing Robosaurus!
Hope you’ve had a happy Easter and feel free to come round if you are missing out on chocolate, there is plenty to share!
Beams collided at #cern
And we didn’t end up in Space! Surprisingly…
I was in Paris the first time beams were collided in the LHC and it was very exciting.
Today’s experiments are apparently very important for the advancement of physics. It’s a shame Sheldon Cooper is not commentating the webcast. Lots of other hot nerds there though.
Hoping to do a tour of the LHC when we are in Europe in May!
Northern america
A couple of years ago I made a pact with two different friends that we would do a roadtrip of America (continent) when we finished uni. Life happened and I ended up in Sydney while both of them are now in America, one in Mexico and Rose (above, with friend Livvy who is visiting her) in Vancouver.
I did make it to Hawaii last year which was one of the highlights of my life and is almost America. See: Swimming with a liger of the sea & Hawaii’s whitehose.
There are so many places I want to go in America, but the ones at the top, top the list:
There is nothing in the world I have ever wanted to see more than this phenomenon. I will spend as long as it takes in Alaska or Scandinavia to see the Borealis.
Ok so this is on everyone’s list, that doesn’t make it any less exciting. I often have dreams about being in NYC.
I could happily live in Portland, or Seattle. I think I really like the city because so many bands I love are from there and they all give it great reviews.
My Grandma had a poster of Canada when I was young and I was always fascinated by Nova Scotia, maybe because Anne of Green Gables lives there. Either way it is “hauntingly beautiful”.
There is something fascinating about ghost towns, especially when they are very new and people still live in them. I would like to see Detroit before it is reposed.
Of course there are many more places I would like to see Washington DC, Boston, Lincoln, Wilmington, Vancouver, Toronto etc… What are your top picks for Northern America?
Gorgeous maps by @bexrad
Around the time my bf and I started dating he went to Melbourne for a poker tournament. I gave him a map of the city which I coloured in with places for him to see. He loved it so much he’s kept it in his wallet ever since.
Last time we were in Melbourne he showed this map to my friend Bex Rad who was also visiting the city. She completely outdid us with her own hand drawn map, far more detailed and awesome than I could ever imagine putting time into:
I’m pleased to see Bex is putting her amazing maps online for your viewing pleasure >
Check them out as they are filled with great places to visit in Melbourne, Christchurch and Wellington (so far).
Related: Nicholas Jones’ map of Flinders Lane >
Fine art catalog mashup
by Jonathan Hull via design*sponge >
I love this, I used to do similar things with all the colour print outs we got in Art History. Have been thinking a lot lately about doing some collages.
Run your own tv ad with google!
This is kind of amazing. So I can basically air my awesome concepts and legitimately enter them in award shows.
I love Google, but I am starting to get scared.
via If This Is A Blog Then What Is Christmas >
Newnes glow worm tunnel #obscuraday
At 7.30am we started our Obscura Day adventure. We took a train three hours out of Sydney, past Paramatta, past Penrith up into the Blue Mountains.
The drive from Lithgow with the other explorers was slow and dusty with very high chances of death. After an hour of windy cliff roads and termite hills we made it to a point where we could only proceed on foot. The lush ferns in the forest reminded me of home until we came across a large red bellied black snake who slithered away we neared him.
After following the old railway line for 15 minutes we entered the tunnel, every so often turning off our torches to reveal the glow worms. They were pretty, but not as impressive as some of the caves I have seen in NZ. When we reached the end the others stopped to take photographs outside, James and I went back into the tunnel. This time waiting still and quiet for several minutes as the glow worms lit up. We even found one who was broken and stayed glowing when the torch was on.
On the return trip we found some more treasures which Lithgow had to offer including a Mining Museum which we jumped the fence and had a look at and the Blast Furnace (below). With trains scarce from the remote location we got a lift home with two lovely friends we made (above, crossing the bridge).
The drive home was probably the highlight of the trip with sing alongs and driving past Hooters, who knew there was one in Sydney! We got home 14 hours after our trip had begun incredibly tired, but surprisingly alive.
Obscura Day was organised by Atlas Obsucra >
A better use of chatroulette for advertising (nsfw)
Here’s a free concept for anyone who wants it. Have a program scrawling Chatroulette for naked people (not hard to find) and play their webcam back to them with their boobs, vag or penis covered in CK lingerie and underwear. Perhaps even tempting clothed rouletters to strip off and try on some of CK’s new range.
Users get to “try on” CK underwear without leaving home and discover that sexy often leaves something up to the imagination.
A compilation of reactions could be posted as a viral video; including at least one fat naked man who’s manboobs have mistakenly been covered in a sexy bra by the programs breast recognition. The vid would provide many LOLs for everyone.
As part ‘ a long term strategy you could also create an online program which allows viewers to try on different lingerie in front of their webcam (with the safety knowing it’s not being watched or recorded). Users could show off lingerie before buying it.
This idea has not been implemented by Calvin Klein, it is a digital extension to a set of billboard concepts I did (with Hayden Maskell) on work experience in 2008.
Invader street art
My friend Colette lives in Paris down the road from a space invader. While I was visiting her, Colette’s dad told me about the street artist Invader who has been tiling walls in the shape nerd oddities since the 90s. Not just space invaders but pacmen, claris works icons and other images associated with the mac I had as a kid.
After hearing about them I started seeing them everywhere in the city. My favourite was by far this gem, Oscar the Grouch as the trashcan icon.
My dad (and Colette’s as well I am guessing) installed this on our computer in the 90s. From memory Oscar would come out of the bin and mumble something about trash whenever you emptied the documents in it. Those were the good old days before Apple sold out. Or before Sesame St did either.
Real or fake?
Real or Fake is a concept for a website which tests your knowledge of handbags. Users are presented with a number of handbags which they must determine the authenticity of. At the end users are given a percentage score of how many they got right and a subtle tip is given you wont find Marc Jacobs at a fleamarket. Implying if you dont want others to confuse your handbag as a fake, make sure you get a brand which isn’t ripped off. Shop Marc Jacobs.
News update
If you haven’t read yet I am famous on the Google blog >
Also I have added a menu to the site with some popular links. Enjoy it while it lasts as I don’t particularly like it and it may vanish soon.
Speaking of site features, I have a comments section after every post. After receiving several emails and facebook messages about a post the other day I thought maybe no one had noticed it. Well it is there and am happy for you to use it as a soapbox.
Creative ideas lost in the business of it all
Circa 2006 I was involved in putting on an art exhibition. The date coincided with the Grey Lynn Festival, an annual fair celebrating the suburb where the exhibition would be held. I suggested we promote our event by handing out bottled water with custom labels to the festival goers. They would be grateful on a sunny November day for the free refreshment and would carry our advertisement throughout the day. When 7pm arrived they would have the address of the event still with them, and hopefully attend.
The idea was well received by the business student organising the event. He called up Waiwera Water and they quoted 60c a bottle for custom labeling, but they had just released a new Sarah Ulmer water and they were selling that at a discounted rate of 35c a bottle.
The business student purchased hundreds of Sarah Ulmar water bottles and we handed them out at Grey Lynn Festival with printed fliers about the exhibition. People threw out the fliers without even reading them. When 7pm came the festival goers had water bottles promoting a New Zealand cyclist and we had no one at the event.
This wasted idea is how I feel about the whole of advertising at the moment. Creative Directors aren’t looking for young people to teach, they are looking for someone to do flash or layouts or write pages of bs for client websites while still being paid a “creative” salary.
How do I get a job where ideas actually matter?
Cookbooks for under $25
The Star Trek Cookbook
Is there one food that humans, Klingons, Bajorans, and Vulcans would like? If so, what would it taste like? How would you prepare it? Could you find all the ingredients locally?
Natural Harvest – A Collection of Semen-Based Recipes
Like fine wine and cheeses, the taste of semen is complex and dynamic. Semen is inexpensive to produce and is commonly available in many, if not most, homes and restaurants.
