We imagine it’s a bit like speed dating. But certainly, this was one of the most curious - and fascinating - jobs we’ve ever done. Over the course of four days, Jim interviewed the entire staff at Exposure Communications. All 120 of them. The idea was to extract a personal ‘nugget’ of information that would appear on the back of their business cards, to give them a little twist. Some subjects were more forthcoming than others, but everyone had at least one quirky thing to say. Conversational letterheads and comp slips completed the stationery revamp. Here are a couple of our favourites:
‘I can’t stand people who don’t walk in straight lines’
‘Do I look like anyone else? Yes, my twin sister’
‘I chopped off the top of my finger and put it in a matchbox’
‘When I’m old, I’d like to be Miss Marple, solving the odd murder’
Throughout December, shoppers in the West End of London are being guided along their way by a new and innovative pedestrian wayfinding system created by those clever chaps at AIG. Called ‘Legible London’, it’s a prototype for a scheme that could be rolled out across the capital over the next few years. Aimed at increasing the number of journeys made on foot, and transforming London into one of the world’s most walking-friendly cities by 2015, the system uses interlinking signage, printed and digital maps, and online guides, to help pedestrians understand the complex maze that makes up the city.
To explain the thinking behind ‘Legible London’, a document called the‘Yellow Book’ was published. I wrote a 6,000-word essay outlining the aims, theories and stories that resulted in the prototype, and spent several days at AIG helping Tim Fendley and the rest of the team produce the ‘Yellow Book’ and an accompanying web site.
We all got there in the end...
After what seems like months (it was, actually) Bedell Group’s 2006 annual review has finally arrived hot off the presses. Designed by HGV, it features beautiful blind embossing on the front cover, and a single line which runs all the way through the book, making relevant points on relevant pages, and ending with the words ‘to be continued...’ on the back cover.
Bedell’s brief was to keep the tone approachable yet restrained and professional, which is successfully reflected in the copy as well as the design. As is the way with annual reports, the interviewing and writing process was a tough undertaking, but it turned out rather wonderfully in the end.
totalcontent has been asked to develop a full tone-of-voice programme for live events and exhibitions specialists Shelton Fleming. SF are a wonderfully creative independent company, who conceive spectacular live ‘experiences’ for the BBC, the Guardian, BMW and the DTI, among others. We won a two-way competitive pitch to get our mits on the business, and are currently working on the first stage brand articulations.
Our first task was to come up with a new strapline – that’s it up there.
By pure coincidence, Deborah had worked with Shelton Fleming many moons ago when she worked in PR – they used to orchestrate Christmas press shows for one of her clients, Woolworths. Good things come around.
Last year, totalcontent collaborated with Blast Design on the launch campaign for Arjo Wiggin's Inuit paper, which won its category in the Benchmark Awards. The Design Week-organised scheme rewards design effectiveness, so it was a real privilege to contribute to a project that not only looked the business, but really did the business. The judges said: “It’s the attention to detail that sets this apart. A lovely story has been created around the brand”.
Talk about a dream brief. To compose a poetic stream-of-consciousness about the urge to write. That’s what Alan Aboud asked Jim to produce for the launch of Story, a new men’s fragrance in a book-shaped bottle by Paul Smith.
The words, painstakingly retyped on one of Paul’s ancient Olivetti machines, were overlayered on to photographs of a bespectacled young man, representing ‘the writer’ and his thoughts. Jim drew on his own personal experiences and referenced the George Orwell essay ‘Why I Write’, adopting an expressionistic, free-flowing style.
The words appear on advertising, POS packaging and carrier bags. You’ll only be able to read snatches of Jim’s work on these items because the words have been artfully laid over each other – unless, that is, you visit www.paulsmithstory.com, where they have been reproduced in full.
A handsome certificate dropped through the totalcontent letterbox last week. It was for the 2003 Orange Corporate and Social Responsibility report, which won a prestigious Award of Excellence at the 2005 Communication Arts awards in New York. Jim contributed all the words for the second year running. This one featured arresting illustration by Olivier Kruger, and was designed by Conran Design Group.
It’s not often you get to meet one of your childhood heroes in the course of your work. But, during a project for UK Athletics through design company navyblue, Jim was lucky enough to spend time with former world 5000-metre record-holder David Moorcroft
– UKA’s inspiring chief executive. The outcome – a document aimed at
geeing up British clubs and athletes in the run up to the 2012 Olympics –
will be published soon.
