Another Printer...?

This is amazing.

Hello Little Printer, available 2012 from BERG on Vimeo.

In this age of all things digital, it's very difficult to produce something that uses paper in a non wasteful way. In fact the cons outweigh the positives in using paper so much that it looks to be obsolete in 20 years. But this little printer is very neat, concise and innovative. It picks and prints out snippets of tweets, images, news, (and pretty much anything thing else you want on there) out on a piece of paper- the size of a receipt. Not only does it bring the digital age back down to a more traditional approach, it is relevant and in my opinion, convenient for the consumer. If you've only got five minutes, print out the information and you have it on a bit of paper- want to come back to it? pin it onto your fridge, keep it on your desk.

So it may not be perfect, and there may be a huge road ahead for improvements and developments, but I like where it is going.

Saachi Gallery, London

I have wanted to visit the Gallery for a while and just stumbled upon the opportunity a couple of days ago. Having had high expectations, I definitely was not let down. I was greeted with a very cheery employee who didn't get waste any time to mention the free tour. The tour, a bit short for my liking, picked out a few exhibitions and noted the artists ideas within their work, and also gave me the freedom to explore the other works without any pre connotations of knowing what they were about.

The gallery itself was very spacious, and I was very impressed how they trusted the visitors to "behave". A simple but clear sign by each exhibition stated that they appreciated a "no hands" policy, to avoid cornering off each sculpture. This is how a museum should be, to view the pieces as they are, without the distance, and WITH interaction. The spacious rooms gave the whole gallery a calm and open feel, focusing on quality rather than quantity- something other museums need to pick up on.

A few picks from the gallery (all pieces are personal collections of Charles Saachi himself!)

(Kris Martin)- The tiny paper cross really puts the rock in perspective.

(Richard Wilson) A perfect juxtaposition how something so ugly can be so still and beautiful. (The floor is actually flooded with oil)

(Folkert De Jong) Colourful but toxic, this circus scene is made from styrofoam.

(Thomas Houseago) The rough and 'unfinished' sculptures resonated with my idea of the vulnerability and imperfections of the modern world.

(all images from Saachi Gallery, London)

Brand Reversions

This is fantastic. Graham Smith has taken logos of competing companies and swapped them around to produce this mind boggling result. You can view more reversions on his website www.imjustcreative.co.uk/brandreversioning

The logos could not look more natural or unnerving at the same time. Natural because it would take a second glance to realise the names are different and unnerving because we all recognise what the real companies are.

This project really highlights the subjectivity of graphic design. On one hand, it shows how brands have become recognisable in an instant but also how little the name actually matters, because a quick glance over may not see anything out of the ordinary....which can be a problem when the two companies are rivals. Are competing companies all that different from one another?

Melton Mowbray Pork Pies

Last year one of the projects was to promote pork pies. This was in the news today which I thought was quite interesting. Apparently they are now protected in the EU and the name is only allowed to be used by the town and surrounding area.

If no countries objected to the idea then the legislation could be carried through. And surprisingly.......none of them did.

It sounds like the whole idea has been taken far too seriously, all reflected in the little sheet which is written in Comic Sans.

Promoting Tap Water

We've al heard about unnecessary packaging and eco-friendly products and everything we can possibly learn about recycling.

With so much (packaging) going to waste, the government has to find different ways of attracting consumers to join the plea and this is one of them. 

The whole concept of buying bottled water to me is unbelievable. So man people complain about scams and excessive pricing, yet they don't seem to attack this sector, the idea of buying water when clean, drinkable water comes for free (almost) out of a tap. I can understand that it is a good idea, to have water accessible to those that need it outside the home, but things have gone too far with the level of branding out there. How did it become such a big sector in business?

This company is dedicated to promoting tap water, selling reusable bottles for £6. Yes it is a little pricey but the money that would be saved in the long term makes it worth it. I really like the design of the bottle aswell, very contemporary and straight forward. I wouldn't be ashamed of carrying that around.

If you have the time visit their site, and if you have the money, buy a bottle!

Actually grumpy free cakes!

This could actually be the funniest packaging ever for cakes. The Fabulous Bakin' Boys have made this limited edition of cupcakes and claim they have “no artificial colours or flavours, no hydrogenated fats and totally grumpy free!”

This is a very bold statement to make but it has half worked for me- I cant stop smiling every time I think about them and I haven't even tried one yet!

Although I can see it is a marketing bluff, the way they make it more consumer friendly by claiming it to be grumpy free, is a marketing area which could be developed. I'm sure, as consumers, we are all tired of the scientific jargon that is thrown across labels but this is much more straight forward and understandable. However I can also see many people taking advantage of the situation and sue companies for false advertising. 

Ginger Beer/Beards....

Over the summer this series of ads were released into women's magazines. I never and still don't understand the link between the two but its very obscure and weird. Something to do with Ginger Beer and ginger beards but if it's caught your attention or you want to find out more then visit their site. 

However as it was released over summer, the adverts does remind me of the holidays- it's so wacky and surreal that my housemates decided to stick them up in our kitchen. Noone however feels the need to go out and try one though.