mayjun2008preview

Westside Studio Eulda Yuko Shimizu Aesthetic Apparatus Online Advertising 2008 Olympic Games Exhibit

May/June 2008 Eight Dollars www.commarts.com

Westside Studio Westside, Shanghoon—who earned a degree in creative writing as well as photography— has a reputation for diving headlong into new challenges. He holds photographers Kenji Toma and Kenji Aoki in high esteem for their tendency to “explore new ways of seeing,” he says. “They’ve taught me to do the same in my own way.” In fact, based on a piece of advice from Aoki himself, Shanghoon has come to view his camera as a tool analogous to a pencil and light as his eraser. “I get rid of things that I don’t need,” says Shanghoon, whose signature style is characterized by dark backgrounds and dramatic highlights, as well as “a focus on what I like.”

Derek Shapton Born: Toronto, Ontario.

2003.

Yellow Pages, Sierra Wireless, Blue Cross/Excellus, Vonage, Tylenol.

Westside Associate Since: Clients Include:

In his previous life, Shapton tried his hand at illustration. “But everything took too long and paid very poorly,” he says. “I decided pretty quickly to concentrate on photography— and I’m really glad I did.” So are his clients and crew. His sets are unlike the vast majority of workplaces in the world: They’re calm, as is Shapton. He stays that way in the eye of the on-set storm, a habit he learned early on, while assisting photographer Chris Nicholls.

He says that Nicholls also taught him the importance of developing skills that translate from one genre to another. As a result,

This page: “An outtake from an editorial assignment for enRoute, Air Canada’s in-flight magazine. The assignment was to shoot Tom Cochrane for their ‘JetSet’ story. We shot outside on a windy day, which worked out for this image.” Sandy Pereira, photographer; Eric Mohr, photo editor.

“Portrait of actress Scarlett Johansson.” Derek Shapton, photographer; Jeff Harris, photo editor; Maclean’s magazine, client.

“This was originally intended for a story in Texas Monthly, about an annual mariachi festival in Guadalajara, Mexico. They OK’d it and then pulled the plug at the last moment. I went ahead and shot it anyway.” Russell Monk, photographer.

Right: Hubei Province, China. Russell Monk, photographer; China Photo Press, client.

50

May/June 2008

Communication Arts

51

Eulda

Best of Norway: Logo for IP communication company Telio. Rune Høgsberg/Kjetil Wold, designers; Bleed, design firm.

Best of United Kingdom: Brightlines Translation logo. Bob Mytton/Gary Martyniak, designers; Mytton Williams, design firm.

Best of Ireland: Luttrellstown Castle Resort logo. Barry Bödeker/Larry Byrne, designers; First Impression, design firm.

Best of Portugal: Logo for Eight Business Lounge Bar. Shift Design, design firm.

Best of Republic of Macedonia: Logo for the Association of Albanian Publishers. Besian Mehmeti/Ngadhnjim Mehmeti, designers; Eggra, design firm.

58

May/June 2008

Best of Greece: Logo for hair stylist Maria Niaka. Chris Trivizas, designer; Chris Trivizas | Design, design firm.

Best of Romania: Helios Art Gallery logo. Sorin Bechira, designer; X3 Studios, design firm.

Best of Denmark: Hou+Partnere Arkitekter A/S logo. Søren Severin, designer; Super Duper Graphics, design firm.

Best of Croatia: Logo for the Academy of Dramatic Art, University of Zagreb. Ivana Vucic/ Orsat Frankovic, designers; Laboratorium, design firm.

Best of Bosnia-Herzegovina: Logo for fashion company TEXTURA. Muamer Adilovic, designer; MuamerDESIGN, design firm; TEXTURA d.o.o. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, client.

Best of The Netherlands: Logo for Effenaar perfomance venue. Serge Scheepers/René Toneman/Frank van Leeuwen, designers; Fabrique Communications and Design, design firm.

Best of Latvia: MÁDARA ecocosmetics logo.

Liene Drazniece, designer.

Best of Iceland: Logo for Food of Angels, a catering company. Örn Smári Gíslason, designer; Örn Smári slf, design firm; Food of Angels (Matur Englanna), client.

Best of Spain: Logo for Torch Spain.

Alvaro Pérez, designer; El Paso, Galería de Comunicación, design firm.

Best of Poland: Moustache Film logo. Wojtek Piotrowski/Adam Tunikowski, designers; Juice, design firm.

Best of Hungary: Logo for arc. Bokor Gyöngyi/ Sipos Levente, designers; Deka Design Stúdió, design firm.

Best of Finland: Moor interior design logo.

Mr. Pekka Piippo, designer; Hahmo Design Oy, design firm; Moor Oy Ltd, client.

Best of Slovakia: International Visegrad Fund logo. Lucia Kleinedlerova, International Visegrad Fund, designer.

Communication Arts

59

Aesthetic Apparatus materials, cd covers, beer ads, logos, toys and “therapy tools for schizophrenics…ok that’s a lie.” But perhaps their greatest accomplishment—outside the hygiene kit for Blue Q and Steve’s House of Charm—is their design of Burger King’s royal crown. Really, the one you’ll get now if you ask. “That crown is an icon of American childhood. Its cultural relevance led us to the job. I’m not sure there’s another job for that client that we would’ve considered doing.” Have it your way: Pick one up at your local Burger King.

While Aesthetic Apparatus has steady business, neither Ibarra nor Byzewski take it for granted. With children in the mix and other responsibilities, I ask the pair if growth has ever made them think differently about their free-spirited approach. “Not really,” says Byzewski calmly. “Sure, when you have a family, money issues crowd in, but having new responsibilities has not changed our work.

People come to us because they like our approach. They don’t ask us to be something we are not. We’d be incapable of it anyway.”

On a related subject, I ask Ibarra if he thinks Minneapolis has influenced how they think and create their artwork. In a rare serious moment, his response was thoughtful: “Midwesterners tend to be practical people.

The history of the region’s art and craft is This page: “This promotional book for Minneapolis photographer Joel Larson was inspired by the experience that all who have gone on location-shoots share—a good story or two to tell afterwards—and his ‘Gramma Seil.’ Filled with stories from past shoots, we can’t say whether these stories are actually even true or whether there ever was a grandmother ‘Seil’ or if that’s possibly just an anagram for another word.”

Test print. Chance/Circumstance/Luck, designers.

Right: “Extreme Low Frequency is a film production company, created by filmmaker Travis Wilkerson, that distributes not only Wilkerson’s own films but other foreign and independent films, which he feels are important. Many films are so under the radar that few people have ever heard of them. Thus the name.”

“One review of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah describes the sound of the band with ‘hitching, muted guitars and singing melodic tones that twist and furl over throbbing bass.’ We, on the other hand, liken the music to an eerie caravan of youthful, carny-style balloon heads floating across the countryside on their way into the city.” Michael Byzewski/Dan Ibarra, art directors; Jonathan Schuster, designer/illustrator.

72

May/June 2008

Communication Arts

73

fresh

Kim Rosen

© Cara Taylor

1

Northhampton, Massachusetts, and www.kimrosen.com.

Location:

I have been working as a freelance illustrator for four years.

Duration:

Size:

Me.

I received a bfa in advertising design from the Fashion Institute of Technology and an mfa in illustration from Savannah College of Art and Design.

Education:

I am continually influenced by people and everyday situations. I love to observe subtle gestures and facial expressions and try to capture them in my work. People fascinate me and that fascination inspires me to draw.

Cultural Influences:

I work from my home studio. If I’m not drawing or at my computer, I’m looking out of the large windows watching the trees sway or blue jays on nearby rooftops.

Environment:

Always do what you love, and work really, really hard at it!

Philosophy:

106

May/June 2008

3

2