Ayios Neophytos Monastery

A Cypriot guy who I recently met was telling me about this monastery, and I had to look it up. It is situated in Paphos, South Cyprus and is thought to have been founded by a Cypriot Saint in the late 1100s. The reason I was interested in it was because he said the building was carved out of the mountain side, and is a beautiful piece of architecture to visit. Looking at the pictures I am a little disappointed- maybe he praised it a little too much for my imagination, as I expected something much more intricate. Still, an interesting piece and an alternative method of architectural construction!

No Sad Big Smile

This clever and original advertising campaign for Adidas caught my eye a while ago now, but it is one that I still think about and remember clearly- which is always evidence of a good, successful campaign. The video ad tells the story of a Japanese man's career as a break up service, presenting a range of situations he has to go through when breaking up with people on behalf of their partners. At the end it then shows the new Adidas clothing range in his scooter, marketed as perfect for stressful every day wear. Here is a link to it on you tube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFaKNttGP9U

Although I'm unable to find the original website again, I remember the great impact it had, and the interactive services it offered. There was one that allowed you to send your own break up text using a choice of various messages, sent to your partner on behalf of the 'no sad big smile' break up service. I thought this was really witty, and an original concept- especially for a clothing line rather than something more directly linked like mobile phones.

HR Giger

Alien (1979)

I was watching the film 'Alien' the other night and it reminded me of an artist I used to love- HR Giger. Cant believe I totally forgot about him! He designed all the alien spaceship interiors and the alien models themselves. I used to love his gothic artwork work when I was growing up- a more mature, horrific and detailed version of Tim Burton's gothic artwork. He inspired me through many of my GCSE artworks! Also a great film- I'm not one for fantasy Sci-Fi films normally but really like the Alien films. Maybe because of HR Giger's artistic input!

WWII Photography, Koln Cathedral

"Beyond this point you draw fire on our Fighting Men. He risks his life 24 hours a day, Do You?"

Just found this photograph on a cathedral architecture website. It shows an American soldier and a destroyed Panther tank in front of Koln, Germany Cathedral- 4th April 1945. I don't always like war photography, because I think they often always aim to capture the same theme of horror, when there are so many other reasons and affects of war. I particularly like this photograph though, as I think it captures a different side to war other than the process of destruction- It makes you wonder what the soldier is reading as he reads the sign. Pride? Guilt? You can see that previously there must have been lots going on, as the residue of the tank remains. But whats left is this aftereffect of war, and the emotions that this soldier is feeling as he reads that sign.

I also like the depth of field on this photo- the crisp, clear focus on the soldier and the sign, and the slightly, but not totally out of focus cathedral and tank behind them. It highlights the connection between the sign and the soldiers emotions, and the fact that both are a product of the destruction of war seen in the background.

Pisa Cathedral- Table Design

Apologies for the bad quality photos- I figured they were better than nothing. During my recent holiday in Italy, I was very aware that we were not to collect 'holiday snaps' for our blog. The design of this table in the Pisa Cathedral interested me though- two marble carved angels holding up one slab of marble to create the Alter table. The design intrigued me, as there were no extra legs to support the table, and the two angels were carved differently making it more difficult to create a balanced structure- the mathematics that must have gone into the design of this table must have been so accurate so ensure a level table with sturdy support. The carvings of the two angels were also beautifully done, adding character to the piece, and an alternative and more modern design to interior of the Cathedral that surrounded to table.

Nevermore 3

My fellow graphic designer friend from back home has always particularly been into animation and games design, and has great experience from this platform game he designed and created in his own time. He's already managed to sell it as a feature for a website, and has received great feedback from other sites including e4 http://www.e4.com/game/nevermore-3/play.e4 click here to play the game!

What I particularly love about Adam's game is the style and beautiful design behind the game. Although I'm not really into games design myself, I can definitely appreciate the time and skill that has gone into this.

Product Placement: UPDATE

After my previous blog entry about 'Product Placement in the UK', there have been some dramatic changes! Today I heard on the news that the Government has lifted the ban on product placement, thus changing the future of British TV forever. I wonder why the government made this major U-turn in their views of product placement, as my last blog entry on this subject discussed, they previously seemed really against the idea. Perhaps it's the £100 million a year that this move will be worth to commercial channels- an economic boost they could all do with in the current situation.

There are some exceptions however. The BBC will still be prevented from using product placement, but do still benefit from the change as it will reduce the pressure on the BBC to share its £3.6 billion income from the license fee. Another exception will also be children's TV.

I think if done well, this will certainly have a positive impact for both advertisers and broadcasters, not only because of the large amounts of money it will bring in, but also because of the self-scheduling method of watching TV that is becoming more and more literal. Many digital packages such as Sky+ allow viewers to fast-forward commercial ad breaks, making them less successful for advertisers, and therefore making less money for broadcasters too. Product placement could therefore open doors for advertisers and broadcasters where others are being closed- there couldn't be a better time for it.