Toronto-based furniture shop Simone Interiors now sells art created by the company owner, Lin Gibson. To promote this happy news, Gibson created a bunch of LP album-sized posters with multicolored bars and stuck them in local store windows -- with no accompanying explanation.
Roger Cullman over at BlogTO has more pictures. He also wonders whether passers-by noticed the installations. Commenters say they did, but nobody knew for sure what the promotion was all about.
"We thought it was one of those new gangs declaring their territory. Obviously, it turns out it was only those hipsters doing their hipster things," ruminated a reader called SCREWFACE.
- Hyundai and Goodby Silverstein & Partners are breaking up. Yeah, it's such a tragedy.
- Tokyo Agency brought the jungle to Paris's Opera Garnier to promote Guerlain Homme, a fragrance for the testosterone-soaked wild animal in you. That's cool and all, but I wonder if the wrist-spritzing preppies in suits didn't send a mixed message. Merci to in:fluencia for passing this along.
- Speaking of France, one Languedoc vintner launched a saucy new label: Le vin du merde (Shit Wine). For optimum psychological fuckery, serve with dark chocolate cake.
- Childhood icon Paddington Bear sneaks Marmite into egg sandwiches during his birthday party. Surprise! All the guests gasp and gag. Wonderful stuff by DDB.
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Copywriters Brian Pierce and Nik Bristow of Fitzgerald+CO/Atlanta are embarking on a wince-worthy mission: following the route of the Cannonball Run, they'll drive across the nation without a single stop. Not for fuel ... not even to pee. (Although I'm sure at some point they'll gracefully pause in order to switch seats.)
All this to promote Willie Nelson's brand of biodiesel, aptly named BioWillie. The mission's been dubbed WillieRun and you can follow the hijinks (of which I'm sure there'll be many) from their blog.
Seriously though, no pee break? I refuse to believe it. You guys have gotta be carrying empty Gatorade bottles or somethin'.
Find out for yourself at their kick-off party, which takes place Sept. 22nd at the XR Bar. More details at the blog link above. And big-ups to Brian Thompson for passing this news along.
For its album Dig Out Your Soul, which debuts October 7, Oasis gathered 15 street bands and taught them the lyrics and sheet music for four of its new songs.
Lat week, the bands were then deployed all over the city -- mostly to subways -- to perform the music with their own flavor. Each performance featured a little sign that said, "You are the first to hear this new Oasis song" -- bringing a little bit of magic to busy commuters, and some eclectic street charm to Oasis's new oeuvre.
Nice to see the high-profile artists disseminate their music with such an open-arms, interpretive approach. Feels so human. And dare I say it? -- social. Watch video here. See more at Creativity. Execution by BBH/NY. The Malloys of HSI helped direct.
You remember UNIQLO, the Japanese retailer whose quirky UNIQLOCK campaign won raves -- and shelf candy -- at One Show, the Clios and Cannes.
As of this week, UNIQLO's SoHo location will be home to a marketing gimmick that utterly outpaces UNIQLOCK in terms of ambition: Mitsubishi's Wakamaru robot. Originally built as a household helper, Wakamaru can look people in the eye and engage in basic communication. (Kinda reminds me of R2D2, except less willful and more coherent. See it meet and greet.)
In addition to wracking up the oohs and aahs, Tokyo Mango says Wakamaru will also help UNIQLO SoHo shoppers locate products around the store. No word on if Mitsubishi hopes to win business -- or at least interest -- through the collabo.
To draw eyes to the 6.7 million uninsured residents living in California, Blue Shield erected 40 naked statues at a Los Angeles-based event for universal healthcare coverage. Each statue is frozen in a vulnerable position, which reflects the state of people living without healthcare coverage.
I like the effort. It brings a bit of provocation to a public landscape without making it seem cluttered with advertising. See more photos.
To promote his circumcision business on a shoestring budget, Ismet Dural of Istanbul, Turkey prepared the tear sheets at left. More photos here.
It's so deliciously creepy. Not only do you get to casually circumcise, you can carry the fruit of that labor in your pocket all afternoon long.
To promote "Music for Life," whose theme this year was the dearth of drinkable water in some countries, the Red Cross and Studio Brussels let loose a thirsty black kid, who invaded TV studios and stole sips out of TV personalities' glasses.
It's hilarious. He just races onstage, gulps water down, and races off again without a word. Nobody can keep a straight face, and one chick just looks totally lost.
A video montage of the effort was put together and disseminated under the catchy name "Black boy wants water." As the Guerrilla Communications blog points out, it kept people awake -- and better still, got its point across.
The effort purportedly raised 3.3 million euros for drinkable water. It also won two golds, a silver and a titanium award at Cannes this year.
From September to October, Levi's "Live Unbuttoned" campaign invades newsstands and 7-Elevens in Hong Kong.
Agency TBWA\TEQUILA partnered with East Touch Magazine to outfit its next issue in miniature 501s. Mag-lurkers will literally have to unbutton the jeans just to finger a copy. Bonus points if you can fit in them!
There'll also be a guerrilla effort in Causeway Bay, where customers can experience the "Live Unbuttoned" campaign live and, uh, unbuttoned, which I think just means they'll be able to try jeans on in a tent. (I'm hoping there'll also be a lively music component. Chinese gen-yers love free music -- who doesn't? -- so it would make sense if Levi's also promoted its free music downloads there, too.)
- Cops in Scottsdale, Arizona use Twitter to keep the community abreast of what's happening in the city: closed roads, active crime scenes and the like.
- Google cozies up to agencies with evangelism missions and SWAG. Don't be fooled by all those friendly faces! John Battelle isn't.
- Ramadan's got brands in a tizzy. Coke released special packaging; Starbucks is showcasing Arabian blends and Ramadan-inspired pastries at its stores in the Middle East. Observers of Ramadan, which fast! until! sunset!, will undoubtedly be thrilled. (I love SBUX, but after a food-free day it's the last place I'd go. Who says "I'm starving! A tart and some coffee would do me good"?!)
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