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PUBLISHER’S NOTE: MOURNING IN AMERICA
For those of us who cut our teeth on advertising and marketing in the 1980s, Hal Riney was a breath of fresh air, a consummate professional
who brought a distinctly Western sensibility to the New York-dominated advertising industry. He died late last month at the age of 75 and I would
recommend finding a complete obituary about his remarkable life, including an escape from a hijacked airplane. My purpose here is simply to
pay tribute to Mr. Riney’s consistent sense of optimism, gentle good humor, respect and modesty to his work for the likes of Saturn, Bartles
& Jaymes, Gallo Wines, Perrier, John Deere, Alamo, and Dreyer’s Ice Cream, among others. Through stints as art director, creative director
and principal at BBDO, Botsford Ketchum, Ogilvy and Hal Riney & Partners, Riney refused to leave the West Coast and he tried to look at the
world through the eyes — and the values — of non-elites, non-New Yorkers and non-MBAs. “People who grew up
around Manhattan tend to look at the world through the eyes of a New York City person,” he is quoted as saying. “People who grow
up in Des Moines probably have a broader picture of our country.” His upbeat, romantic and sometimes whimsical celebration of this
American vision culminated in the still-influential “It’s Morning in America” campaign that contributed greatly to Ronald
Reagan’s 1984 reelection landslide. Admittedly, the world is a more complex and less sunny place now; maybe it always was. But Riney
stood then, and his memory stands today, as a rebuke to fakery, arrogance and cynicism in advertising.
— Gordon Kaye
Make The Logo Bigger
One additional note about Hal Riney. After serving as a writer for the U.S. Army in Italy, his first job in the private sector was in the mailroom at
BBDO San Francisco. Soon after, he was promoted to art director and recalled this about his first creative position: “My job was to make
logos bigger. Once the logo got big enough, they would have a meeting. Then I would move the logo up or down, or to the right or to the left. Finally,
I would be told to make the headline bigger. Because compared to the logo, it was now too small.” Sound familiar?
GRAPHIC DESIGN NEWS
Absolut Lie
With interest extremely high in the Presidential election, creative professionals are turning to it for inspiration. Among the current programs: a new
ad campaign by XM Satellite Radio Holdings which involves a mock election for the president of XM Baseball (candidates are New York Yankee
shortstop Derek Jeter or Boston Red Sox first baseman David Ortiz); advertising for Pizza Hut that features a montage of images from recent primary
debates that show presidential hopefuls addressing the American economy; and marketing for Swiffer which features a debate between a sponge
and a mop as to which runs the “cleaner” campaign. One of the most timely election-themed images — in this 2008 campaign
of misspeaking and misremembering — comes via a magazine ad for Absolut vodka which shows a candidate at the podium during a news
conference with a Pinocchio-like nose. A recent online poll of 1,174 registered voters by Publicis MediaVest found that 73% of voters are reading or
watching coverage of the election at least a few times a week. “You can’t escape the election right now — it's an incredibly
exciting election,” Vernon Irvin, XM’s chief marketing officer, told The Wall Street Journal.
Interplay Of Design and Delight
The 2008 Annual Conference + Expo of the Society for Environmental Graphic Design will address the interplay of graphic design and the forces
that inspire creativity. The event features speakers reflecting on Interplay: Collaboration, Synergy, and Delight and takes place May 28-31 in Austin
TX. Ronald Shakespear of Diseño Shakespear in Argentina will be inducted as the 2008 SEGD Fellow at a luncheon honoring him and the
recipients of other SEGD awards. Speakers are scheduled including Marc English, Terri Ducay, Adam Greenfield, and Liz Lambert. The Conference
also features an Expo on Friday, May 30, where more than 80 exhibitors will feature products, materials, and services for specialty sign and exhibit
design.
http://www.segd.org
Chicago Poster Initiative
“While Chicago is well known for its architecture, fine art, public landscaping, sculpture, and other art and design disciplines, there is a
significant lack of applied visual arts in public spaces,” says Chicago graphic designer and former AIGA Chicago President. To remedy
this, the Chicago International Poster Biennial Association has been established to promote visual literacy, multiculturalism, and international
cooperation through the poster work of artists worldwide. It begins with a competition, with contemporary posters published in the last two
years eligible. The association was conceived by Rutter and Yann Legendre, a French designer working in Chicago. It has already received financial
support from more than 40 area designers, as well as the STA. Various departments within the City of Chicago — World Business Chicago,
the Mayor’s Office, Cultural Affairs, and the Park District — are also assisting with strategic and logistical efforts to mount a public
and outdoor exhibition of winners. As a kicker, Icograda has endorsed the program, and several world-class poster designers have agreed to jury
the inaugural competition, including Chicago’s John Massey, whose poster is shown here.
http://www.chicagobiennial.org
Colors At The Academy
Later this month, Enrico Bossan and Erik Ravelo, the editorial and creative directors of Colors magazine, along with Babak Payami, acclaimed director
of video and film at Fabrica, Benetton’s research center on communications, will present Colors magazine’s latest issue, Money, devoted
to the world economy. At the same time, the visitors from Italy will launch a collaborative venture between the Academy of Art University and
Fabrica. The three will review the work of students at the Academy of Art University interested in joining Fabrica’s creative team in Italy. Those
selected will be offered a one-year all fees paid scholarship to live in Treviso and work with the Fabrica team. In addition, 79 Gallery will host a
photography exhibition featuring Colors 73/Money and an unusual installation of a giant podium made of flattened issues of Colors where the magazine
cover is a 100 dollar bill aimed at questioning the role of money and the relationship society has with it, and another exhibition, this one at the Italian
Cultural Institute of Italy in San Francisco, features all 73 original issues of Colors magazine.
http://www.academyart.edu
Designing In Concrete
Matt Britcher, Art Director of BNP Media’s appliance DESIGN magazine, wins the inaugural TABPI Design Challenge. Britcher will receive
U.S. $250 for submitting his winning solution. The organization, Trade Association Business Publications International, invited trade magazine art
directors and designers to imagine themselves as the art director for Concrete Times magazine. As part of the challenge, the publication’s editor
and publisher were split as to whether the focus should be the fictional magazine’s 40th anniversary or their first-ever 100 Top Leaders feature
article. The judges panel included: Miguel Bravo, Art Director, Gifts & Decorative Accessories; Bryan Crowe, Art Director, Cosmetics &
Toiletries; Shawn Hoefler, Art Director, HPAC Engineering; Jaun Mims, Art Director, National Real Estate Investor; and Roxanne Rash, Art Director, Print
Solutions Magazine.
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SPOTLIGHT PROJECT:
RUTGERS SITE BLENDS FORM AND FUNCTION
The new Rutgers Alumni Association website creates an online pavilion where alumni can gather, share information and build relationships. To
achieve the vision of an engaging, graphically appealing, easy-to-use and participatory site — in contrast to the heavily text-driven
former approach — Ken Johnson, the Association’s Project Team leader, partnered with One Flight Up Design & Innovation
of Boonton NJ. Johnson led a review of sites from peer universities. “We wanted our site to serve alumni by being the front-end to the University
and all of its constituent parts.” says Johnson. “We were focused on ease of use and graphical content over text in order to transform
our site into one of the best of its kind. In addition, we needed to distribute authorship among our members and eliminate the need for the classic
webmaster function. A tough set of requirements to be sure.” Comments Martin Shova, EVP and Marketing Director for the design
firm: “RAA had clear objectives and a vision for the site, and our job was to bring that vision to life.” According to Shova, site
development evolved over several months, with CSS template development and database integration beginning as soon as the design was
established. The end result: a welcoming venue with vibrant branding and uncluttered design which highlights information and builds community
by clearly showcasing events, images and highlights. On the backend is a custom content management solution with workflow tools for routing and
approving new content, and managing event and attendee data. Alan Cocuzza, Online Creative Director for One Flight Up, says: “The resulting
site is an excellent blend of both form and function.” The Association and designers are currently working together to provide additional online
features, including a class page module that will allow each graduating class, regardless of location, to post relevant information about their activities
and members.
http://www.rutgersalumni.org
http://www.oneflightupdesign.com
TRENDSPOTTING
Crowding The Music Space
MySpace is entering the crowded digital music business with MySpace Music. It will offer free streams and sell downloads of tracks without digital
rights management software. Three major labels — Sony BMG, Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group — are partnering
with the social networking site. The move represents a direct challenge to market leader iTunes. The MySpace approach of eliminating digital rights
management software gives it an advantage to consumers over iTunes, which still mostly sells tracks encoded with Apple's Fairplay software. More
importantly, the decision indicates further acceptance of the benefits of digital media on the part of the record labels. Despite their mistrust of file-sharing
services, the record executives are recognizing that consumers who purchase a track from one online music store want to be able to listen to that track
on a range of portable devices.
A Strong Stomach
Just when brands and products need marketing the most — in a downturn — many budgets are cut. This is an age-old problem,
about which Barry Silverstein elaborates in the March 24 issue of brandchannel.com. He writes, in part: “A recession can weed out weaker brands
of lower quality and therefore make category leaders even stronger. At the same time, value-based brands can increase brand strength because they
present the consumer with a familiar name at a reasonable price. Also, during a sluggish economy trusted store brands can appeal to budgeting consumers
who previously purchased a more expensive brand name product... A brand marketing paradox is that expenditures are often slashed in recessionary times, so
brands risk becoming less visible. This is not the best strategy. Harvard Business School professor John Quelch... says: ‘Instead of cutting the market
research budget, you need to know more than ever how consumers are redefining value and responding to the recession.’ Quelch also points
out: ‘It is well documented that brands that increase advertising during a recession, when competitors are cutting back, can improve market share
and return on investment at lower cost than during good economic times.’ Of course, a company’s management must have a strong enough
stomach to follow a contrarian’s strategy and invest funds in brand marketing when other expenses must be controlled.”
http://www.brandchannel.com
Serving Up Spanish
Since Spanish speakers account for a significant amount of pizza purchased in this country, you might think that major franchises are able to field calls in
that language. It just ain’t so. This Spring, Domino's Pizza becomes among the first to serve up an automated language ordering system catering
to Hispanics. The move, say company officials, is part of an attempt to target the fast-growing U.S. Latino population. The system provides
Spanish-speaking customers nationwide a toll-free number, where they can place orders via a personable digital Latina voice likened to an ethnic
Mister Moviefone. The technology answers incoming customer service calls, converts them to URL requests and pulls data from web-based services,
explains Rob Weisberg, Domino’s Vice President, Precision and Print Marketing. “With this platform, every store that is part of this program
now essentially has hired themselves an entire staff of people who speak Spanish and can embrace the Spanish-speaking consumer,” says
Weisberg. “And to a greater degree, we’re now able to leverage the Hispanic-targeted media that we’re buying.”
Another Slice
Papa John’s pushes its pan pizza as official delivery pizza of NCAA Basketball March Madness — which ends tomorrow with the
Women’s tournament — by featuring a website that seeks to capture the madness on digital cameras. College basketball fans were
invited to upload their best shots of tournament action to a Papa’s Pan Fan site. Photographers are emailed confirmation that their pictures have
been received, with an identification number and an offer they can redeem online for a large pizza with up to three toppings and two free Coca-Cola brand
drinks for a discounted price. The first 6,400 people who registered to join Papa’s Pan Fan Nation also had the opportunity to win additional
prizes. All photos are posted on the site and, at the end of each day’s tournament action, a panel of basketball experts choose the best photos. For
additional promotion, flyers are being passed out at tournament venues and email blasts complete the pitch. The site is accessible through April 12.
http://www.papaspanfan.com
SPECIAL EVENT: PANTONE SEMINAR FOR COLOR FREAKS
Pantone and X-Rite’s popular color seminar “Color Control Freak ’08” continues to draw graphic designers from around
the country. Controlling color from inspiration to production is a dark path for many designers. But Color Control Freak ’08 sheds a practical light
on the subject, providing useful, easy-to-understand recommendations for the color crazed and the color dazed. This year’s seminar tour includes a
special bonus discussion on emerging color trends, the psychology of color, and Blue Iris, Pantone’s 2008 Color of the Year.
Learn what new colors and color palettes are driving the design world today. Pantone’s new Goe System highlights the discussion on
controlling spot colors in a design. Discover how the Goe System works and how it can be used to accurately reproduce designs across multiple media.
Everyone who attends Color Control Freak ’08 will receive a comprehensive workbook that’s an excellent reference tool back on the job. It
also includes valuable gifts, discounts, and information on the products and services used during the seminar. Sponsored by Pantone, HP, Eizo Displays,
and X-Rite, the one-day interactive seminar gives graphic designers the color knowledge they need to capture, create, communicate, and control color
from inspiration to production. Here is a quote from a pleased participant, Ramon François, International Academy of Design &
Technology: “Seeing and experiencing the latest technology in color control proved to be far more valuable than merely reading about it. I am
convinced that X-rite in conjunction with the PMS and Goe Guide are breaking down long held communication barriers while moving color management
in a positive direction for one and all.”
Color Control Freak ’08 stops in April include visits to Dallas (April 8), San Diego (April 15), D.C. (April 15), Los Angeles (April 29), and New
York (April 29). There are more in May. For more information and registration, visit...
www.xrite.com/colorcontrol08/
HOUSEKEEPING: PLEASE RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION TODAY
Demand for GDUSA, the magazine, is so great that we will be forced to drop any subscribers who has not renewed or updated his or her subscription
within the last 12 months. If that is you, please act now at...
http://www.gdusa.com/subscriptions/renewsub.php
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