SlyBrand

Here’s an encouraging read from Unclutterer on finding joy in divestment.

“I can calculate the motion of heavenly bodies but not the madness of people.” —Sir Isaac Newton

Here’s an article from Tait Subler in Minneapolis on the importance of imagination in marketing.

Thanks to Spike at Brains on Fire for the heads up on this one.

Found this ramble as I was going through some old files. Sorry if it’s a bit raw.

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Don’t focus on the competition, but be aware of them so that incidental design or symbolic crossover confusion does not occur. Don’t focus on cultural downfalls or what “should” be done that isn’t being done because of the potential for cynicism to become the prevailing tone, although possibly subtle, of conversation or conveyed content.

Focus on goodness. Focus on distinction, but only the good things that create distinction. The goodness should come from the essence of the company represented. Whatever is good needs to be highlighted. If it’s many things, then those many things need to be part of the identity of the company. If there are a few good things, then those few things need to be highlighted and communicated. It is about character. And character comes from trial, perseverance.

So, as a business, the clients I should hope to work for are those who understand something about the the world, and have made up their mind to hope for goodness. My business should reflect this concept, and should, leading by example, communicate this concept, of goodness prevailing, in the midst of brokenness and everything wrong, in not only its essence, but in every extension, theoretical and practical, conceptual and visual, in thought and action, spirit and word.

Some friends have got me thinking. Thinking about the past, about history, and thinking about the now. I live close to the campus of Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. They’ve recently built the new, state-of-the-art, Paul Barret, Jr. Library. If you drove a car down my street going east, and kept straight onto Rhodes campus, you’d hit the new spire and entrance to this amazing new building. I saw it go up. Brick-by-brick. And it is truly awe inspiring. I think it’s the most beautiful building in Memphis. But perhaps the most beautiful aspect of the new library, built in the colleges’ time-tested standard limestone (talk about solid branding), is the seemingly seamless combination of old and new. It’s not a stodgy, old, stinky building. It’s new, and technologically advanced, and fresh, and full of people being really productive. And that, is a wonder to behold.

We went to a book reading and signing last night of Kevin Sessums. Kevin, a native Mississippian, lives in New York and is a contributing editor at Allure magazine. He’s currently touring the south promoting his new book Mississippi Sissy.

Kevin read an except from his book last night. And the way he read was awesome. Rumor had it that he, himself, narrates the audio book version of Mississippi Sissy, so I checked into it and found an audio excerpt here. While some parts are graphically explicit, Kevin knows how to tell a story, and that’s what kept me on the edge of my seat. And the cover design is genius.

Kevin is pictured here at the signing with his cousin Janice.

I couldn’t have said it better.

Found this article in the Memphis Business Journal. Their work is super.

There are some things in this world that just can’t be explained. And that don’t need to be. Like this. And this. Admitting that mystery exists is counter-intuitive for me. But it’s funny, the more I discover things that just can’t be explained, the more confident I feel to clearly explain the things that can.

That’s important for me to remember. Because whenever art and business are combined, like when a brand identity system is developed, there are things that can’t be explained, and things that can. In the creative cycle of identity development, there’s a place for exploratory ambiguity and a place for crystal-clear communication. It’s like the mystery creates the clarity. And the tension between the two makes it fun.

So while I’m watching this, I’ll be loving the fact that some things in this world just can’t be explained.