The Magician

Idea: Invisible Girlfriends

On evolution of conscious observation, perhaps.

click to enlarge:



more Ufos here

Happiness = Productivity

Mollie Partesotti and Benjamin Alter at the VCU Brand Center created a thought-provoking animation which explains how work spaces need to be re-thought to ensure employee happiness. Showing how dehumanizing workspaces, such as cubicles, are at odds with both well-being and the way we work now, the duo artfully explores the domain of the modern workplace.

Episode 1 - A deconstruction of how we work from Cubes Are Evil on Vimeo.

Politics and social media

The end of top-down control of news is changing the nature of politics.

Personal encounter with UFOs

This is a bit random post: the pics below were taken at 9:55 am, @ Humbolthein park, 01.08.09 (Berlin)...there were 10 of shiny objects in the sky, moving pretty fast in a tight formation to the south, silently.
the photos were taken by a friend of mine who was next to me at the time of the event. as you can see the sky is very clear... and very bright from the sun... which made it quite difficult to make a sharp shot.
the whole event lasted about 2-3 min... until they vanished.




this is 500% zoom:

My interpretation of the dollar pyramid

Pimp up that Bible !

Just came across a rather curious brief on Mypitch.com from a client called Bible Illuminated. Basically it looks like a desperate attempt to make the old book more relevant to the modern culture - consumerism!
Strategy: To redesign it and pimp up with modern images.

Here's the winner of the pitch, who came up with an idea for a new Bible Illuminated audio book - iPod Cross:



It looks kind of interesting and weird but I don't think that design in itself is going to solve the problem or make any substantial difference. In fact, I believe it is a counter productive move to tie up the old spiritual teachings to something as flimsy and whimsical as modern pop culture. Strategically it is rather naive. It won't solve the problem and it won't make new "recruits" and it won't do any justice to Jesus teachings either!

I understand that the people behind this campaign want to make the Bible more relevant to modern life, but this approach is not the solution and seriously misses the zeitgeist (rapidly increasing disappointment with mainstream materialistic culture). So why on earth would you want to jump on this bandwagon that is heading towards the blind alley anyway?

What would be the solution? In my opinion, if you want to make Christianity more relevant to modern society, action would speak louder than words (or design gimmicks!) For example, focusing on solving world poverty, environmental problems, speaking loudly against politics of war, supporting those who fight against injustice (even if they belong to a different faith, like Palestinians!), etc.

This commands respect and attention and should be brought forth, not the tacky gimmicks.

Hot sauce made & marketed by prisoners

A couple of years back I had an idea that involved jailbirds marketing products for Esprit clothing brand. I remember that quite a few ad folks liked the idea (the claim) but weren't so sure about involving the prisoners in it. To them it seemed a cultural taboo not to be crossed! Fast forward to the present... and we see a different picture - the taboo is no longer a taboo! Check out this website www.jailhousefire.org where prisoners from Florida's Hillsborough County Jail are making and marketing their own hot sauce online:



There you can also see some print ads and a couple of tv ads for the product.
I am not sure if the ads were concepted by the prisoners as well - they have professional look, but are too conventional and bland in comparison to this brilliantly original product idea!

Idea: Gmail Send Later button

... just like the "post options" on this blog.

IN SEARCH OF THE PERFECT JOB

Welcome to my vision of the future advertising agency. This is my video application for the perfect job.

Idea: Green grave stones anyone?

following one of my previous ideas on graveyard technology (tombstone slideshow), here's another proposal:

Idea: New 2012 scenario, perhaps?

Check out this trailer for a new 2012 movie. The only interesting thing about it, in my opinion, are special effects. As for the plot - it's a yawn. Hollywood execs use the same old strategy of scaretactics, physical destruction, lots of noise, explosions, etc. This might appeal to an average Joe, of course, but definitely is a misleading interpretation of the global event (21 dec. 2012)



Personally, I would be more interested to see a different interpretation of the event. For example:

Why not to explore a different scenario with the base idea that on December 21, 2012 all people of the earth suddenly become telepathic? What would be the consequences of this global phenomena? And would it change the world for better or worse? And how many of us would survive the sudden change?

I have spent a fair amount of time researching the subject of 2012 and to me it's more about the paradigm change in our human consciousness, and less about earthquakes, tsunamis or falling fireballs. Booo hisss!

Engagement vs Compliance

Below is a very interesting TED talk by Daniel Pink. In December Dan has a new book coming out called Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. This talk will make you (re-)think about work, management, and what motivates you — and those you work with — to excel.

iSnort mobile app

... a controversial iPhone app from PeterMagicJohnson:



1,720,962 views, 1,926 positive ratings (plus one from me ;)

Idea: Personal Data Art app

Here's another mobile app idea inspired by data artworks from http://www.visualcomplexity.com

Wouldn't it be cool to have mob application that turns all the statistical data in our cell phones into individual interactive art visualizations?

click to enlarge:

Sorry I ate your slippers!

featuring Molino (our house dog) on the guilt trip...

Idea: Personal Mobile Oracle app

This is a concept for a mobile phone app that helps undecided to make a decision.
It works as a psycho-digital oracle and provides four possible answers to any given question.

Idea: Inventing New Free

This idea was inspired by the latest book from Chris Anderson "FREE " where he writes about the future of a radical price:

Wouldn't it be cool if a brand offered us a free product from its rival?

i.e. Special promotion with underlying message:

We are so confident in superiority of our product X that we are willing to give you a free sample from our closest competitor for you to judge for your self.



idea can be applied to all sorts of snacks and sodas, tea and coffee brands and other premium products.

Tossers mirage

Charlie Brooker of BBC shares his view on aspirational TV.