Friday, May 29, 2009

A nod to local Vancouver talent - Mark James

The team at Free Agency Creative recently had the pleasure of connecting with Vancouver art director/designer Mark James. He boasts a sophisticated body of work that pivots one way or another on fashion. As you page through his printed work for local fashion brands such as Kersh, Nicole Bridger and Anna Kosturova, his forte with imagery and art direction become clear.

Above images for Kersh Spring 08 - shot by Candace Meyer

Above images for Kersh Fall 09 - shot by Candace Meyer

One can't help but appreciate his ability to find balance within each image through his strong sensitivity with colour, light and composition. He successfully unifies the models within their landscapes and surroundings - all the while championing the clothing. He's then able to weave the story of each image into a larger narrative within a particular DPS or the entire catalog.

All the technicalities aside...the work is beautiful, yet honest.

Above images for Nicole Bridger - shot by Candace Meyer

Above images for Anna Kosturova - shot by Chris Haylett

Above images for Kersh Fall 09 - shot by Candace Meyer

Click here to check out more of Mark's work.

~tyukawa

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

A REBRAND: Ocean Sales Inc.

Ever heard of the Bamix Mixer or the V-Slicer? Sure you have. The Bamix is enthusiastically endorsed by the famous Gordon Ramsay. Ocean Sales Inc. has been responsible for bringing recognizable household products like these to North America for over 25 years.

Our goal at FAC was to help Ocean Sales focus their messaging, leverage their strengths and modernize their aesthetic with a fresh face.

Through a family of quality products, Ocean Sales is committed to showing you how to live better - at home, in your health or at play.

Once key messaging was established, development began with the creation of a new symbol and wordmark. We wanted the elements to be brighter and more vibrant through open white space and strong colour.

The symbol (old to new): Unity, Holistic, Vibrancy, Organic

The wordmark: Human, Soft, Contemporary, Open

We are now in the process of creating essential touch points such as the standard stationery package plus a few other elements that would create greater awareness among their respective target markets.

Free Agency Creative is also excited to be teaming up with Domain 7 to design and build the new Ocean Sales website and store functionality. Not only will the site further enforce the key brand messaging, the site will continually deliver new ways to improve your life - through tips, articles and video. Stay tuned for the launch this summer.

~tyukawa

Friday, May 15, 2009

Tak helps with the RETHINK Scholarship

A sound teaching relationship with the Communication and Ideation Program at Langara College has given Tak Yukawa the privilege to be a judge for the Rethink Scholarship.

The judging panel:
- Dr Shelley Gruendler, head of CID at Langara College
- Ian Grais, founding partner and co-creative director of RETHINK
- Rob Tarry, group creative director of RETHINK
- Tak Yukawa, partner and co-creative director of Free Agency Creative

The initiative is a joint effort between Rethink and Langara College to nurture and develop promising young talent into future Art Directors and Designers. The PRIZE: an $18,000 scholarship to Langara's two-year Communication and Ideation Design Program and a 3-month internship with Rethink (wow!).

Applicants were asked to submit an 8.5 x 11 sketchbook filled with their ideas, inspiration and process.

Judging took place in the creative boardroom of Rethink with judges spending time with each book - all the while smiling and conversing about what caught their attention. In the end, a winner was chosen who best represented the ideals of the prize.

A special thank you goes to Cameron Walker (pictured in black shirt above) at Rethink for coordinating a fun afternoon.

To learn more about the scholarship details and to watch a great promo video by Rethink - visit http://rethinkscholarship.com/


~tyukawa

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

TED pick: Idea + Square = Origami

This is a post that's definitely close to my heart.

When I was just a small boy, my mother taught me how to fold a square piece of paper into a paper samurai hat. It was a miracle on many levels. Ever since then, I've been impressing my caucasian friends with my skills in Japanese paper folding.

Then one day I stumbled upon a presentation on TED.com by a westerner by the name of Robert Lang (not Robert Langdon from the Da Vinci Code) who utilizes math and engineering principles to create mind blowing creations. He starts with cute animals and works his way up to Mitsubishi car commercials and space exploration.

It's important to note that all of Lang's creations are made with only 1 square piece of paper.

Instead of committing seppuku (when a samurai commits suicide out of shame), spend time roughly 16 minutes and watch this presentation at TED.com

Watch the presentation

~tyukawa

Saturday, May 9, 2009

A meeting of some great minds


Now don’t get us wrong, we love working with all of our clients, but this group is exceptional. Over the past 2 years we’ve enjoyed working with Marketplace Events in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton. 

In this meeting, we’re hosting a brainstorming session with the show managers from each city, the heads of marketing and sales, the PR agency (Tara Parker Tait PR), and the media buying firm (Genesis Vizeum). The task today – how do me make the fall season an unprecedented success.

Thanks Marketplace, working with you is truly a pleasure.

Don.

Here are a couple of samples from campaigns past.



Monday, May 4, 2009

ECU Gradshow





Tak and I enjoyed the opportunity to see the work of this year’s Emily Carr University grad show. This group is close to our hearts, having had the opportunity to instruct them on their fall semester projects, and it was nice to see them show off their hard work and creativity. The work is solid this year, and it’s always surprising how polished the final solutions are presented. 

This time of year, there’s always debates and politics around design programs as everyone tries to measure who’s doing what best. An evening like this reminds us that at the heart of all the work is people, all on different parts of a journey, that will lead to many different destinations.

Congrats ECU grads of 2009.

Ginger Ngo, a talented typographer who we had the privilege of having in our office for the better part of 6 months.


Joomi Choi and Mi Hyun Sung presenting their game that deals with the topic of death.


Chloe Lan and her project on the Plantilions (a must see to understand what they are).

Don Williams.