Cover Stories
The Sunday Times Magazine was once a driving force in British editorial design. Simon Esterson attends an exhibition of some classic covers to see if its legacy still holds
Pingu Rocks
Eskimo Disco, 7-11, featuring everyone’s favourite behaviourially-challenged, flightless seabird
Showing off their Smalls
The winners of the inaugural Smalls awards, which, as the title suggests, aim to celebrate filmmaking for mobile phone or iPod video screens, have been announced.
The Smalls are initiated by design and production company Devilfish, and are the latest example of a creative company using a competition for subtle promotion of its services, as well, of course, as a means of showcasing new talent to the ad and production industries.
The competition, which was free to enter, requested films no longer than three minutes based on the theme of “Moving”. This year’s winner was director Jon Riche, who created a witty pastiche of urban sport parkour that works just as well on a big or small screen (still shown below).
Breaking News
Thanks to London’s evening paper wars, commuters now have a choice of two freesheets to grab absentmindedly as they head home. Last night, those who picked up Rupert Murdoch’s thelondonpaper got quite a shock.
Its front page appeared to splash on the assassination of President George W Bush. A grainy black and white photograph taking up almost the whole page showed the President clutching at his chest, while frantic aides hustled him away. Stern type below spelled out the enormity of what had (apparently) happened: George W Bush: 6 July 1946-Tonight 9PM. Heh?
Bart Vs. The White Stripes
Bart Simpson and Meg White get caught up in a drum off in this witty Simpsons homage to Michel Gondry’s Hardest Button to Button promo.
TiRA and Build Make GP Journal Feel Better
This is Real Art (TiRA) has collaborated with Michael C Place of Build to revitalise The Practitioner, CMP Information’s magazine aimed at GPs.
Why Creativity Matters: How to get creative with branded content
The latest talk in our virtual event series explores how branded content can resonate with audiences. Register now to join us on May 17
Butterkist brings giant microwaves to billboards across the UK
The new campaign promotes Butterkist’s microwavable popcorn while reminding people it’s the go-to snack for high drama and gossip
The rise of abstract logos
Many brands are ditching their well trodden logos in favour of a more abstract approach. Here we unpack this trend and examine whether legibility should be a concern
The art of writing a brief
We look into why briefs are so imperative to get right, the difference between advertising and design briefs, and whether visuals have any place in them
Why branding will be vital in the AI race
Pentagram partner Jody Hudson-Powell discusses the visual language that is emerging around AI, and the importance of brand when it comes to building trust in the rapidly developing technology
Creativity Sucks! returns for a new series
Creative Review’s podcast is back and on a mission to tackle the most thorny questions facing creatives and brands today. In this episode we look at whether rebrands are worth the money
Titi Finlay on social, storytelling and sneaker culture
The social media maven and artist discusses the importance of social and content in getting audiences to “believe” in brands, plus how an obsession with sneakers has guided her career
Manchester’s love letter to the Barcelona design scene
First launched in 2013, Dave Sedgwick’s event uniting Manchester with Barcelona returns this week for its swansong. He discusses the parallels between the two cities and the realities of producing an event alongside the day job
Royal British Legion reveals plastic-free poppy design
Design consultancy Matter has created a fully recyclable paper redesign of the charity’s symbolic poppy, which previously used plastic
How to write a great advertising slogan
Here, our advertising correspondent breaks down the methodology for creating a great slogan, by examining some of the iconic endlines of the past. But is there really a formula for brilliant creative work?
How creativity can help demystify unfamiliar concepts
Bas Korsten, global CCO at Wunderman Thompson, talks about using creativity to challenge people to think outside what they know, and why human ideas are still unmatched by AI
Fanta unveils bubbly global branding
Illustrations and typography enhance the soft drink’s first global brand identity, which aims to bring consistency to its designs around the world
Pepsi reveals new branding that nods to its past
The soft drinks brand has announced a new visual identity ahead of its 125th anniversary later this year
Pentagram creates identity for cannabis brand Ben’s Best Blnz
Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Ben Cohen has launched a cannabis brand designed by Pentagram’s Eddie Opara. We speak to them about what the brand stands for
