BUBBLES FROM SIRDAB

An artsy April Fool

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 19:12:00 +0000

April Fools, the Exhibition 1 - 30 April 2009

April Fools' Day, although not a holiday in its own right, is a notable day celebrated in many countries on April 1. The day is marked by the commission of hoaxes and other practical jokes of varying sophistication on friends, family members, enemies, and neighbors, or sending them on fool's errand, the aim of which is to embarrass the gullible.

Urban street art has fast become a cultural phenomenon sweeping the UK and Europe with its audacious challenging of authority and cultural norms. Public but anonymous, these artifacts of clandestine performance by artists operating outside the established channels of exhibiting and selling their art, has contributed greatly to the dialogue of the enduring question,

“What is art"?

Taking the ethos of the hoax into consideration, an eclectic collection of contemporary urban art will be exhibited in London during April, and sold off the walls, which be constantly changing throughout the duration of the exhibition to create a curiosity with the viewer. April's Fool exhibition showcases a collection of international artists who examine the genre's explorations into art in mediums that range from painting, wheat-pasting, and collage to drawing and sculpture.

One of Sirdab's favourite artists, Pure Evil will be partaking in this exhibit.

Flyer by Beatrice Brown

Top 5 Advertisements

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 23:39:00 +0000

Sirdab's top 5 ads

WWF: “Our life at the cost of theirs?”

Ad Agency: Ogilvy & Mather, Mumbai, India

FedEx: Fragile

Ad Agency: BBDO Canada, Toronto

Nestea: "You are what you take."

Ad Agency: Publicis Venezuela

FA: Women's Deo

Ad Agency: Mudra, Chennai, India

BMW: Robin Rhode's Expression of Joy

Artist: Robin Rhode

click on image to enlarge

TAG of Love

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 17:27:00 +0000

TAG AT THE GRAND PALAIS - THE GALLIZIA COLLECTION

27 MARCH - 26 APRIL 2009

As part of a project unique in the history of art, 300 tagged pieces are being presented at the Paris Grand Palais in a world première. Each of the 300 works in this exhibition comes from an encounter between the leading T.A.G. (Tag And Graff) artists and Alain-Dominique Gallizia, who has spent the past three years in a constant quest for the last art form of the 20th century.

This is the first time so-called "Art Sauvage" has been exhibited in a cultural institution in Paris! By commissioning works from the greatest worldwide graffiti artists, architect Alain-Dominique Gallizia has assembled and continues to collect key examples of painting from this so-called "ephemeral art form."

All the works follow a unifying and threefold principle: the same format (a horizontal canvas in two parts measuring 60x180cm), the same theme (on the left the artist's signature, and on the right an open interpretation of the theme "Love") and if possible produced in Alain-Dominique Gallizia's studio in Boulogne-Billancourt, which he opened to the artists. The (some would say crazy) objective is to create a comparative record, both artistic and historical, instantaneous and eternal, of this movement.

The Gallizia collection speaks volumes about the energy on the street, where every nationality can express itself from the American pioneers and European stars to the up-and-coming generations in Korea (Reach), Iran (Isba) and Brazil (Nunca).

Bubble letters, cloud letters, block letters, chromed signatures, restyled and freestyle cartoon characters… the works at the Grand Palais form a unique and multiple panorama of styles and colours.

Le T.A.G. au Grand Palais is a unique event forming the most important testimony to street art for over three generations.

This exhibition will also be an opportunity to view the 700m2 restored area of the museum’s south-east gallery.

More photos here

Three questions for... Alain-Dominique Gallizia, architect and the man behind the T.A.G. project for the Grand Palais

What gave you the idea for the project?

I first discovered the world of tags in 1992. At the time I was doing volunteer work for a foundation distributing sleeping bags to the homeless at the Gare du Nord station. This is where I first came across the tags that covered the trains and platform walls. As for the project itself, the inspiration was twofold....

A 'Grafista' you should meet

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 22:44:00 +0000

Patrick Thomas describes himself as a 'Grafista', a Spanish term for graphic artist / designer. However, the word has an activism sort of connotation, something in the spirit of guerrilla although this is not accurate; it's just how it sounds to the ear...GRAFISTA....TIME TO TAKE ACTION ;0)

Based in the industrial quarter of Barcelona with fantastic views of the city, Patrick's studio, laVista occupies the top floor of a converted warehouse. This is where his inspiration runs big, bold and often politically spirited.

Patrick never fails to make an impact with pure, noncomplex creativity and provoke a reaction with gutsy visual communication that speaks loud his political concerns, as it highlights loads of the world's crucial political matters: Wars, religion, recession, globalisation...Power is pivotal to the simplest of Patrick's graphics.

Design thinkers like Patrick Thomas, who use their creative wisdom to design for stuff that matters and manage to tackle pressing questions, are saluted at Sirdab. Fresh, efficient design makes world problems and controversial ideas rather engaging, as well as thought provoking. We need more of such!

If interested, you can get in touch with designer Patrick Thomas through Agency Rush, a team of cutting-edge image-makers.

Diamond Dusted Sid

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 00:18:00 +0000

BANKSY's 2000 SID VICIOUS acrylic, spraypaint stencil & diamond dust on canvas --tagged & signed on the reverse & on stretcher, was auctioned at Sotheby's March 18 2008 for 120,000—150,000 USD

Got Sold today: Hammer Price with Buyer's Premium: 110,500 USD

Source Banksy's Forum & Sotheby's

Executed nearly ten years ago during an early and highly formative period for the artist, Sid Vicious by Banksy is a unique canvas created in a one-off template configuration. There is only one further canvas depicting Sid Vicious, though this is a different composition. A consummate portrayal of one iconic bad-boy of British urban subculture by another, this is a brilliant summation of both post-Modernism and urban graffiti art, two of the most exciting trends in British art of the past two decades.

The composition consists of the multiple portrait of the subject, Sid Vicious, in a square, three-by-three grid format totalling nine repetitions. Achieved via the street artist's stencil, this multiplication is deliberately evocative of the work of Andy Warhol, whose repeated portraits of world-famous celebrities--from Jackie Kennedy to Elvis Presley to Mick Jagger--spearheaded the global omnipotence of Pop Art and have conditioned global visual culture ever since.
The three-by-three compositional arrangement of nine heads is a direct reference to Warhol's 'Mao' and 'Marilyn' reversal series, executed from 1979, in which nine representations appeared in a similar grid format.
The use of diamond dust also quotes the work of Andy Warhol, who utilised the innovative material in a variety of portraits and 'Shadow Painting' works from the 1970s and 1980s.
The infamous bass guitarist for the Sex Pistols band, Sid Vicious remains the foremost embodiment of the Punk phenomenon. Punk aimed to revolutionise mundanity and indifference, railing against the desensitised apathy of mass-produced popular music and culture. Here Banksy brilliantly re-presents the literal personification of Punk – Sid Vicious – in Warhol's instantly recognisable dialect of Pop Art. The resolute individuality that stands at the heart of the Punk ethos is perfectly satirised by its desensitising multiplication.
At the same time, the diamond dust portrait at the centre of Sid Vicious suggests Banksy's ultimate conviction in individuality and freedom of expression.

The Banksy Return

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 17:41:00 +0000

A piece of Banksy stencil art is said to have appeared on the streets of London over the last few days in Gillette Square.
Banksy's forum gave the heads up on it first thing first and I was informed too.
I am a huge fan of his work...
One of the Forum's member, and naturally a Banksy fervent fan, Stephen shot what he saw and uploaded this top quality work that seem to be produced by Banksy himself. (Should trust the fans conviction that it's him indeed). Cool find! Great close up shot! Banksy's top stencil incorporates beautifully the environment. Love the way the teddy twists the image around. See for yourself. By now, am sure these photos will be invading the cyber space.

All photos by Stephen

Dancing & Painting

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 16:43:00 +0000

For the American artist and entertainer David Garibaldi, his paintbrush is his microphone.

Garibaldi was a defiant Los Angeles street-graffiti artist until a sympathetic high-school teacher pointed him in a more positive direction.

Garibaldi later painted in the studio and created artworks onstage during urban musical performances. This inspired him to develop his “Rhythm & Hue” show, which he describes as “a dance routine involving painting.”

Accompanied by music, Garibaldi amazes audiences by energetically creating enormous pop-culture portraits in minutes. His renowned performances have been featured on TV shows, at charity events and in video games. With a brush in each hand, he creates 6 foot tall portraits in less than 6 minutes, of icons, celebrities, sports personalities, and special honorees to carefully selected music.

These plate-signed and numbered fine art posters were created using a sophisticated digital printer. They are stretched and ready to hang and are produced in limited editions of less than a hundred of prints.
Interested to get one, check it here
Interested to get an original artwork, click here

Frenchy flags subversion

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 05:19:00 +0000

Flags are filled with national symbols that do nothing more than summoning an emotional connection.

Immediately and widely recognisable, bold and colourful, flags are the most commonly used national symbols in twentieth-century war propaganda.

They are such potent, powerful and familiar visuals, in fact, that graphic designers would often use only the national colours to convey their message.

At the Sirdab, we are fond of flags. Click on the 'flag' tag & see for yourself... However, our pick this time is the French flag.

Parody is another means of contemporary communication often used by engaged artists & activists alike. Have a look at these subverted French flags; the message is, for the most, clear and loud, as the parody used is to generate some sort of awareness around major issues. The emblems designed are highly politically charged.

For more on flags, culture-jamming and spoofs, click on flags.
We bet that you'll find an unexpected archive of 'flagedelic' imagery gathered and brought to you by the Sirdab.

Are you Snoopy, Nosy and/or Gossipy?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 00:36:00 +0000

Design above by kjapelian

The often spoken proverb, 'HEAR NO EVIL, SEE NO EVIL AND SPEAK NO EVIL' is one of my favourite sayings ever. This phrase was put into practice in the form of three monkeys carved: Mizaru, with his hands over his eyes, Kikazaru, with his hands over his ears, & Iwazaru, with his hands over his mouth.

These famous monkey trio has been popular for eons.

In English, the monkeys' names are often given as Mizaru, Mikazaru, and Mazaru.
Sometimes there is a fourth monkey depicted with the three others; the last one, Shizaru, symbolises the principle of "do no evil". He may be covering his abdomen or crotch, or just crossing his arms.

Although commonly spoken, the origins of the three wise monkeys are rarely known.

The main guess is that it is derived from a religious phrase, "If we do not hear, see, or speak evil, we ourselves shall be spared all evil."
It's such a good advice, especially as it is so difficult for people to hold their tongue, not backbite and gossip.

Even the meaning of the proverb is widely interpreted, ranging from not being nosy and spreading rumours to not being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The popular phrase in Japanese translates to: "mizaru, kikazaru, iwazaru."
The Japanese word for monkey being "saru." However, some say that the three wise monkeys aren't Japanese in origin even though the source that popularised this pictorial maxim is a 17th century carving over a door of the famous Tōshō-gū shrine in Nikkō, Japan. The maxim probably originally came to Japan with a Tendai-Buddhist legend, from China in the 8th century.

Whatever its origins or interpretations are, this is one Golden Rule: speaking unkind, evil, or judgemental words is no use to anyone.

Have a look at these funny reinterpretations of the proverb and simply take it as a reminder not to be snoopy, nosy and gossipy.

VIVA LA EVOLUCION

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 00:10:00 +0000

Click to enlarge image

This year marks two significant moments in the history of science: the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, and the 150th anniversary of the publication in 1859, of his "On the Origin of Species."

Arguing that mankind was descended from primates, Darwin's theory has been facing criticism from those who said that he was rejecting God.

On Darwinian topic, we will be posting graphic variations of the iconoclastic theory of evolution, that is said not to be believed by 2/3 of Americans. Indeed, one poll, commissioned by CBS News, revealed that more than half of the US population believes that God created human beings in their present form.

Would these funny visual interpretations do any good to the theory? Doubtful...

Anyhow, these examples of intelligent designs will bring a smile to some faces; at least, we hope it will, while the battle between evolutionists and creationists keeps raging on till date.

POST - FUTURE

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 22:19:00 +0000

Legendary artist John Van Hamersveld is best known for his poster for the 1964 blockbuster surf documentary/film, '"The Endless Summer" and his album covers for the Beatles (Magical Mystery Tour), The Rolling Stones (Exile on Main Street), Jefferson Airplane (Crown of Creation), the Grateful Dead (Skeletons in the Closet), Kiss (Hotter Than Hell) and Blondie (Eat to the Beat), to name a few.

However, his credentials are endless. Among his other creations: an ofﬁcial poster and 360-foot-long mural for the 1984 L.A Olympic Games; illustrations for magazines such as Esquire, Rolling Stone, Billboard; branding and logos for Fatburger, Contempo Casuals and Broadway Deli.

The iconography of his oeuvre runs deep, from Day-Glo tones to trippy swirls to the grinning “Johnny face,” an icon in itself.

Like an acid trip in ink on the paper of space and time, John Van Hamersveldʼs graphics have transcended the psychedelic ʻ60s and become classic images that are as futuristic as they are vintage.

“Post-Future,” opening March 7 at Shepard's Fairey's Subliminal Projects art gallery, features many of Van Hamersveldʼs classic works juxtaposed with re-imaginings of those images, recent retro- styled pieces and a never-before-seen series of drawings connecting past and present.
Through the show, Van Hamersveld creates a lens, through which the past can be seen and the future can be sourced, where imagery melts into a pool that is both the source and the destination of creativity.
Van Hamersveldʼs book, also titled 'Post-Future,' is set to be released in September.

Bad Typography is Everywhere, says Craig

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 18:12:00 +0000

Sirdab has, for some while now, spotted this artist. Since then, we've been fervent admirer of London based illustrator, Craig Ward, posting several brilliant stuff made available on his online space dubbed 'Words are Pictures.'

Here is a sample from Ward's latest type-based design expressions.

As brilliant as we got used to! A true delight!!

Street Shots

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 21:40:00 +0000

Martha Cooper has been photographing creative kids in action on city streets since the mid-1970s.
In 'Street Shots,' opening January 16th at Subliminal Projects --a gallery located in LA and owned by Shepard Fairey-- her photos reveal the imaginative children of pre-renewal New York City as they mined the abandoned lots of the city to create toys from trash.
Cooper, renowned for her graffiti and hip-hop pictures, brings those classic images together with ones depicting inner-city kids building forts from scrap, catching flies in cola bottles and racing homemade go-karts—all without adult supervision.

The opening of 'Street Shots' also marks several debuts: Cooper’s new book, 'Going Postal,' a collection of photos of postal labels bearing street art; her image collaboration with Shepard Fairey, available as a screen-print poster; and her own Obey line, with photos printed on clothing, bags, and skateboards.

Martha Cooper is a documentary photographer who has specialised in documenting urban vernacular art and architecture for over thirty years.
In 1977, Martha moved to New York City and worked as a staff photographer on the NY Post for three years. During that time, she began to shoot graffiti and break dancing, subjects which led to her extensive coverage of early Hip Hop as it emerged from the Bronx.

Martha’s first book 'Subway Art' (with Henry Chalfant), has been in print since 1984 and is affectionately called the “Bible” by graffiti artists worldwide. The 25th anniversary of Subway Art will see the release of a new edition to be published April 2009.

Her next book, 'R.I.P.: Memorial Wall Art' looks at memorial murals in NYC and 'Hip Hop Files 1980-1984' contains hundreds of rare, early Hip Hop photos.
'We B*Girlzis' an intensive look at girls who breakdance worldwide, and 'Street Play' and 'New York State of Mind' are her collections of NYC photos from the late 70’s. 'Tag Town' shows the evolution of graffiti style from early tags to complicated pieces.
Her latest book, 'Going Postal' contains hundreds of images of graffiti and street art on postal stickers.

Martha’s work has been widely exhibited in museums and galleries and published in numerous magazines from National Geographic to Vibe.
She lives in Manhattan where she is the Director of Photography at City Lore, the New York Center for Urban Folk Culture.

Art to sell Revolution

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 00:20:00 +0000

Paging Mr Banksy
Originally uploaded by Matthew Gidley

Beautiful Stencil Art with a message to ponder...

Avoid Consumerism

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 01:27:00 +0000

Since it's crisis time, and everyone's recommending to consume less & eventually boycott brands & big corporations, here is some thoughtful visual communication we found here & there that is also pretty delightful & amusing...

Disneyland art world

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 22:58:00 +0000

I have long been interested in collage art and have found very few artists with the style I love. Now that I came across Greg Gossel, an American graphic designer who is also into old-school collage, can't but include it in my sirdab's.

A charming kaleidoscope of colour with pop vivid comic flavoured images--in the spirit of Roy Lichtenstein --cascading in all directions, defying reason and challenging the viewer to make sense of this sparkling and fresh world that is Gossel's own.
Spontaneous, bright, positive & surreal; so irreverent that it becomes madly beautiful.

Gossel on his work:

"My work is about life, the struggle, and the beauty. I try to accomplish this through the interplay of many diverse words, images, and gestures. I’m interested in process – building up a surface and layering a variety of mediums; spraying, printing, splashing, erasing, dripping, and writing in a very loose and spontaneous way. When a piece is ﬁnished, I want it to illustrate a visual history of change, process, and expression."

AlphaPETS

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 23:07:00 +0000

Discovered a very talented artist with such a fresh illustrations. Some while ago, Alexander Blue was working on a book idea that shows kids how to draw characters using each letter of the alphabet… Blue was looking for a title to give to this beautiful book idea. 'AlphaPETS' was one of the options he suggested...
...It's amazing stuff, so imaginative, so inspiring, so playful, so creative & so fun, so & so infinite..

Featured below, characters based on the uppercase letter “R” & letter “E”. More here

War has started...in Poland

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 23:31:00 +0000

Polish artist, Peter Fuss illegally puts up his works on billboards as a way to make a bitter comment on the reality surrounding him. He is not afraid to speak his mind on social taboo subjects.

His works seems much like an examination and evaluation of the present, the world, the minds & the human being as a social species. His art is as minimalist as it can get , with simple and clear form.
Fuss comments on politics, the relationships between religion and authority, flashy religiosity, social problems, art and all in between with one banal tone that make it sound like common sense statements. However, this light approach is full of wit;
his sharp observations will let you ponder the meaning of the world for long hours... His website is also easy to surf & straight to the point with no artifice or pompous statements.

If interested by Peter Fuss art, you can buy his artwork ---on canvas or paper-- from Zero Zer gallery
ZERO ZER Gallery is based in Poland and sells original art and high quality limited edition prints from a range of popular polish street artists.

The below images found on Wooster Collective site, are from a conceptual graffiti project labeled
"War Has Started" From Peter Fuss

every day i am. i get up. i eat. i go out.
sometimes i feel well. sometimes i have a flu. sometimes i'm tired. sometimes i'm happy.
and around me is the world.
wars. riots. presidents and prime ministers.
newspapers. the internet. news. advertisments.
and other people.
which i know well. and which i meet the first time.
sometimes it's hot. sometimes it rains.
strikes. accidents. disasters. spilt tea. a lost key.
--By Peter Fuss

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 23:34:00 +0000

Pentawards is the first and only worldwide competition exclusively devoted to packaging design in all its forms. It is open to everybody in all countries who are associated with the creation and marketing of packaging.
Judged by a prominent international jury and endorsed by Icograda IDA, bronze, silver, gold, platinum and diamond Pentawards were distributed to the best brands’ packaging designs of this year’s competition and handed on to the winners at the Pentawards Ceremony, at Luxepack Monaco (France), on October 30, 2008.

Piper Heidsieck - Rosé Sauvage designed by Viktor and Rolf won the Best Of the Show Diamond award.
Entitled 'Upside Down,' this is a bottle that rests on the neck, the neck and front labels and cap foil reversed!

“How do you do something new with something timeless? We had only one answer: reverse the proportions;”

This is how the two Dutch fashion designers Viktor & Rolf express it. So the designers kept all the traditional graphic features of champagne (bottle, cork, ice bucket, glass, and labels) but thought that if champagne could turn one’s head, it was only necessary to reverse all these visual elements to amplify this impression, and especially to differentiate the Piper Heidsieck brand from its competitors by recreating the packaging of the champagne.
The bottles of Pieper Heidsieck Rosé Sauvage signed by Viktor & Rolf were launched on the market at the end of October 2007 in several duty free shops and in exclusive bars and wine bars. This is therefore a limited-time edition. The glass bottles are covered by a sleeve produced by Sleever International, a leading global company in this very innovative area of packaging design.

The idea of working with such an exciting signature as Viktor & Rolf is born from a strategic and creative design management partnership between Piper Heidsieck and BETC Design. It is this creativity in support of packaging, also expressed throughout the communication (the site will also spin your head around) that won over the Pentawards jury.

Yes, We Did!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 23:42:00 +0000

Shepard Fairey and Moveon.org have teamed up to mark this moment in American history.

These commemorative prints mark Barack Obama’s historic victory and were designed by groundbreaking artist Shepard Fairey—the same artist who designed the world-famous, iconic “Hope” poster for Obama.

The prints signed by the artist will be available to those who donate $500 or more, while supplies last. The unsigned prints will be available to those who donate $80 or more, plus an additional $10 donation to cover shipping, while supplies last.

Get yours here

One's donation will help MoveOn support Barack Obama’s agenda of transitioning our country to a clean, green-energy economy, ending the Iraq War responsibly, and providing affordable health care to all Americans.

These 5,000 limited edition prints are 24″ x 36″ and are offset printed on French Paper Company’s Cream Speckletone stock under the artist’s supervision. Each print is numbered by hand, 1 through 5000. The first 1000 in the series are signed by Shepard Fairey. Quantities are limited, so only one order (either signed or unsigned) per person/household is allowed.

A national Hero stamped

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 23:17:00 +0000

Maxime Chaya became a Lebanese Hero when he raised, for the first time in history, his country's flag to the highest point on Planet Earth- Indeed, Lebanon's foremost sportsman and climber, Maxime Chaya was the first person from his country to hoist its flag atop Everest , and he did so en route to ascending the highest mountain on every continent - the Seven Summits- while also skiing to the North and South Poles.

Avid sportsman since childhood, Chaya has been knighted twice for his achievements and got his portrait tagged on a 1000 Lebanese Lira post stamp. He was officially nominated the "SEVEN SUMMITEER" on May 15, '06 after having conquered all 7 Summits, the highest Peak on each Continent---
This is another act of gratitude from the Lebanese government, which hopefully will contribute to remind the Lebanese of Chaya's awesome achievement: a climb that was also stimulated by an urge to trigger awareness and focus on important issues, such as sustainability for a "Small Country with a Big Heart."

Reveal your Mask, Mr...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 19:21:00 +0000

Reveal your Mask, Mr...
Originally uploaded by Sugarpoppy

A stunning airbrushed piece by a very talented fresh grad in Fine Arts, Elie Zaarour, who designed "Beat The Cancer" illustration for the Beirut Marathon Graf Space set @ The Forum De Beirut during PVD insanely hyped night.
The Graf Space was conceptualised & managed by The Communication Zone for the BMA as a spin-off of its campaign against Cancer & is only Chapter One of a bigger artsy roller coaster sort of entertainment event & art fueled activities within the MAP: the Marathon Art Playground-scheduled for Nov 26-29 in Down Town Beirut at the Marathon village.

Stay tuned for a blast off happening of street culture & urban art set to trigger meaningful interactions, creative dialogues & memorable stories all intended to highlight Beirut's Marathon mission to step down 'Haydak el Marad,' cancer that is.
All marathoners & runners are encouraging us to Run for Hope & ideally help Knock that devastating disease Down.
Let's Do IT, Let's MAP Out Cancer all together...

United colours of Lebanon

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 23:02:00 +0000

Colourful and quite unexpected taglines and designs around Lebanon, Beirut & various social issues made available on diverse products--Shirts, Mugs, Bags, Hats, Thongs, Boxer shorts, Pillows and many more Houseware & Officeware-- all put for sale by Raynbow, the Online Store founded in April 4th 2005 and powered by CafePress .

Items have been classified into categories, where you can search for designs and products 100% Lebanese, or just with an Arabic feel & lettering; there is a category titled country pride items, a quite innovative design approach to tackling social matters, also available beside more classical products filed under Fashion, clock and Lebanese model calendars-- these are cheesy items sort of-- Valentine, so on so forth...

Moreover, and the coolest part --but that is also one of Café Press interesting sides--Raynbow gives the designer, the chance to have your work exposed. If you believe you can be a part of the Raynbow team, and design awkward stuff to promote Lebanon, well feel free to submit your designs & click here. Let us know whenever your design becomes part of the peculiar yet daring Raynbow, store, would be glad to help highlighting unusual but pretty good work from Our Funky Town Lebanon, maybe the funkiest...

It is understood that Raynbow, is a non-profit store, where all the profit from sales and raised funds from donations will be used to cover the store's expenses first, whereas the rest will be donated to non-governmental organisations (NGO) working on human right issues in Lebanon.
Subsequently, by shopping at Raynbow, or by donating to the store ,you will be contributing to empowering human right movements in Lebanon.

Also, for people familiar with the ad industry in Lebanon, Raynbow site has been designed and developed by KALEIDO GRAPHICS.

Click to enlarge & view a selection by Sirdab of Raynbow best pick

Be there comrade

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 22:34:00 +0000

Four poster execution aesthetically enhanced by a great use of typography for the Beluga Bar of Mumbai's Intercontinental Hotel, India; this copy-based campaign has been conceptualised and designed by IBD Hakuhudo Percept, Mumbai.
The ads seem to target the yuppie new Indian elite who love to play the "gauche caviar" card, but with money to spend, who cares about politics!
To paraphrase the popular 80s show "lifestyles of the rich and famous" motto "Vodka wishes and caviar dreams!"

The copy reads:
"The Vodka and Caviar Evenings. From 22nd August - 30th Sept, '08.
At Beluga. Be there comrade."

Chez nous, il y a du talent...et le médiocre aussi!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 20:11:00 +0000

Bumped into Beirut 001 --a blog from Beirut as its name indicates-- that houses some good visual communications, a witty social design sort of expression.

However, the blog seems to be dusty somehow, in the sense that the last sign of life dates back to...Hold your breath...2006.... & the owner---of what was supposed to be a space to archive some posters & postcards, made in Lebanon by Grabriel F. or whoever is behind Beirut 001---holds other blogs that ain't any active too. Whatever...It's worth a quick visit for whatever is in there...