56: HCI and music

Yann Tiersen on six iPhones:



My church's worship team on iPads (skip to 5:00 to see Seth Condrey making good use of the T-Pain app):



Collective win, yes?

53: but it's only november

To all hipsters and "ironic" gift-givers:

The makers of Snuggie have caught onto you. And they're coming out with a Christmas ad campaign too. See below for a sneak preview:

51: artsy-fartsy friday

A little over one year ago, I came up with this idea to have an "Artsy-Fartsy Friday" feature on this blog. I made one Artsy-Fartsy Friday post and then kind of proceeded to forget all about it for the next 365+ days.

So. In honor of what currently appears to be an annual feature, this post shall be a conglomeration of the fabulous music videos of the Chicago-based band, OK Go.

Let's start with their newest release -- this is for their song, "White Knuckles":

One featuring their awesome Rube Goldberg machine...


More stop motion (if you didn't know already, I have a thing for stop motion)...



Incredible choreography... This is the video that helped launched OK Go onto the Billboard charts.



Public response, according to some of the things I caught on Twitter the other day:


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Whether or not you love or hate OK Go's sound, it's hard to deny that they're producing really innovative music videos with some pretty groundbreaking ideas.

45: mixtape - dog days vol. 2

Download (.zip): http://www.mediafire.com/?rh78ra2oloz3nzk
It is with great pleasure that I bring you the second installment of my summer playlist, featuring Johnny Flynn (le swoon... Purchase his new album, Been Listening when you can -- it's divine, I tell you! Divine!), Jessica Lea Mayfield (she has an amazing track record including a recent performance on A Prairie Home Companion, and she's only twenty!), and my British husband Bobby Long. Includes 16 songs that add up to just over an hour of absolutely fabulous sounds. May it prove to be excellent background music as you carry out the remainder of your dastardly/non-dastardly deeds.

Download (.zip): http://www.mediafire.com/?rh78ra2oloz3nzk

Tracklist:
McFearless - Kings of Leon
Stained - Blue Foundation
Blinding - Florence + the Machine
I'm On Fire - Bat for Lashes
Left to Lie - Bobby Long
The Lengths - The Black Keys
The Wrote & The Writ - Johnny Flynn
Various Stages - Great Lake Swimmers
I Don't Mind - Marcus Foster
The Bucket - Kings of Leon
Drumming Song - Florence + the Machine
Arizona - Kings of Leon
Hey Ya (acoustic) - Mat Weddle
Kiss Me Again - Jessica Lea Mayfield
Good Love - Bat for Lashes
Dog Days Are Over - Florence + the Machine

Download (.zip): http://www.mediafire.com/?rh78ra2oloz3nzk
Side note: I realize that most of the artists in this mix are tied someway or another to a certain vampire-related franchise, which skeeves me out a tiny bit... but it's also kind of reassuring to know that my aural aesthetic is evidently satisfactory enough to warrant some sort of entry into the world of OSTs. There may be hope for me as a soundtrack designer yet.

42: mixtape - dog days vol. 1

Download (.zip): http://www.mediafire.com/?kgz0xzykyi3ztzj
It's hot here. And rainy. And humid. All at once. And I'm pretty sure someone has put my life on pause or something, because my days are going by very, very slowly... Welcome to the dog days of summer, right?

According to this mysterious thing called Brady's Clavis Calendarium, the dog days refer to the time when "the seas boiled, wine turned sour, dogs grew mad, and all creatures became languid, causing to man burning fevers, hysterics, and phrensies." Sounds awful.

...Awfully exciting, that is!

I'm happy to present the first part of my summer soundtrack, entitled dog days vol. 1. This mix consists of one hour, two minutes, and nine seconds of assorted tunes and dancey-dance music to accompany the boiling seas, mad dogs, and feverish, hysterical and/or frenzied people in your life. (I've included a smattering of lazier songs for you languid creatures, as well.)

Hope you love it as much as I do! Here's the tracklist, and cover art is posted above (click the thumbnails for bigger sizes):

Seasun - Delorean

U + Me = - Dan Black

Moth's Wings - Passion Pit

Blood Bank - Bon Iver

You're Gorgeous - Babybird

Make You Crazy - Brett Dennen & Femi Kuti

Amsterdam - Peter Bjorn and John

The King and All of His Men - Wolf Gang

Brackett WI - Bon Iver

I Feel It All - Feist

Something Good Can Work - Two Door Cinema Club

The Golden Floor - Snow Patrol

Untitled 06 - Brand New

Leaving You Behind (ft. Lykke Li) [explicit] - Amanda Blank
Soco Amaretto Lime - Brand New

Excuses - The Morning Benders

Download (.zip): http://www.mediafire.com/?kgz0xzykyi3ztzj
Check it out and let me know what you think. And of course, if you like what you hear, be sure to support these artists directly. Go to their shows (with me, preferably -- I love concert buddies, I need more), buy their music and merchandise, give them lots of love/cupcakes/secret handshakes/kisses, you know the drill.

36: tiffany's favorite office workplaces, summer 2010 edition

No personal studios or home offices allowed. Factories and warehouses OK.

Liganova (link)

Photos via company promotional materials

Last summer, I worked at DDI Magazine as an editorial intern, which entailed all sorts of responsibilities, including but not limited to contacting PR reps to gather information, photos, and so forth. I got in touch with a lady who works at Liganova ("brand retail marketing" company), and she sent over a bunch of promotional materials. I fell in love with and screen-capped some photos of the company's offices, and am now sharing them with you. If this is illegal, I'd appreciate if someone could let me know in the comments. As soon as possible. Please. Kind thanks in advance!

NYLON (link)

Photos via The Selby

It's possible that I'll live and work in New York City someday after graduation. If I do, I hope to be able to spend my time in a place as charming as the offices at NYLON Magazine. I love the very open, airy feel of the place, the studio lights, the clean colors and the workspace set-up, the reference materials all along the walls. No cubicles here! Very young, very fresh, very alive-feeling. Perfect for putting together a bold, hip[ster] magazine. Just lovely.

W+K Portland (link)

Photos via W+K Portland

If you know me IRL, you may be aware of my slight obsession with this agency. The previous photos may help you better understand why. (By the way, I'm fairly certain that the tent and makeshift hammock in the third photograph are not actually permanent pieces in the building. Details here, if interested.) I've never seen pictures of the other W+K offices, so I can't be sure if this is just the "W+K style" or a Portland thing (two of my favorite things, incidentally -- W+K and PDX), but either way, it's fabulous and quirky and divine. I want my real-life home to look like this.

Ink & Dagger Tattoo Parlour (link)

I guess technically this is a studio, but it still qualifies to be in this list for a number of reasons. First of all, it is not called "Ink & Dagger Tattoo Studio." It is called a parlour. Second of all, the guy who opened the place -- Russ Abbott -- evidently decided to spell "parlor" the British way. And anyhow, everyone knows Brits do their own thing, so I've decided to take a leaf out of their book (oh, there's my idiom for the day) and ignore the few stipulations I've listed at the top of this post. Don't question my logic.

Photos via Ink & Dagger Facebook

I really adore this place. It's masculine, strong and bold, without being disgusting or dirty (sorry for the generalization, boys). It's not over-designed or -furnished. It feels very comfortable, warm, cozy -- which I imagine is perfect for people coming in to get tattoos for the first time, or for people who have long sessions ahead of them... Very classy, dare I say handsome, and it screams out -- in a polite, tactful tone of voice, of course -- a resounding "BITE ME" to all those who hold stereotypical views and misconceptions regarding tattoo artists.

Mast Brothers Chocolate Factory (link)

Photos via The Selby

Such a beautiful place to spend your day. All of the wood accents and warm brick walls make Rick and Michael Mast's Brooklyn chocolate factory a very welcome place, even during the early hours of the morning -- hah, at least, in my head this is the case. I really like the giant world map on the back wall, as well; gives it a bit of a rustic yet sophisticated feel. And of course, there's the obvious fact that this is a craft chocolate factory. 'Nuff said.

Other people's lists:
The Coolist: Office Design Excellence
Positive Sharing: 10 Seriously Cool Workplaces
Office Design Blog: Office Design
New York Magazine: An Inside Look at the Offices of...
Tutorial Blog: Cool Workspaces

What about you? Where's your ideal place to work?

35: volvo still thinks edward cullen is dreamy... but then again, who doesn't?

It's not that I'm a big Twilight fan. Honestly. But whenever any Twilight-related ads come out, I can't help but be drawn to them. (So what if I find Robert Pattinson handsome as anything? I can't help it. He was made that way.)

I discussed Volvo's marketing approach for New Moon in an older post (click), and I'm sure you'll be thrilled to hear that, in conjunction with its Boston-based ad agency Arnold Worldwide, Volvo Cars of North America is launching another online campaign to promote its XC60. Excellent timing, of course, since Eclipse -- the third and sappiest installment of the Twilight franchise -- premieres in one week on June 30.

(I'm both slightly embarrassed and oddly proud to announce that I have a pass to see an advanced screening of Eclipse on June 29, courtesy of my friend Stephanie. Not Meyer.)


The campaign is called "Lost in Forks," and features print and TV advertisements starring RPattz and K.Stew, as well as an online game, developed by Euro 4D. The goal of the game is to reach the fabulous Cullen home "in the shortest number of steps, by successfully navigating a series of forks" (hah, forks... good one...). If you manage to find Edward's impossibly hidden house*, your name will be entered for a chance to win a Volvo XC60. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, you too can have Edward's personal car! Oh, Stephenie Meyer... you have worked such wonders for Volvo.

Apparently there are clues at each fork in the road, some of which are actually misleading (w-t-f?), so you really do have to know your Twilight stuff (update: no, you really don't). As the game goes on, you can click on things and find Easter eggs, which as far as I can tell, include brief little montages and video clips related to the film. Oh wait, I just found some wallpapers! You guys! Now I can have a line of newborn vampires on my desktop! Wow, Euro 4D. You went all out.

1024 x 768 right click save as, please	1280 x 1024 right click save as, please

Interested? You can play the game and check out the campaign here. Don't be ashamed. I've been playing it too. It's kind of convoluted and fun and REALLY difficult and also incredibly true to life, because if I had to find Edward's house on my own, I'd probably get lost a thousand times over. (Sorry to all the people who are Google-searching "how to find edward cullen's house" and ending up here instead! That said, I have finally found the Cullens' awesome home, after constructing a tree diagram to map my steps.) Lost in Forks, indeed.


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*Seriously? No wonder the Cullens have no non-human friends... Can you imagine having to give directions to people? "You really should stay away from me. You might get lost in the forest and be eaten by wolves. It actually would be my fault this time." "It REALLY WILL BE like I never existed because you probably won't be able to find my house again, anyway!" Oh, Edward. How you underestimated Bella back in New Moon. It's like she's got a GPS system installed in her brain.

34: "concept promotion" does not sound fun, but it is -- promise

It's been such a hectic yet non-hectic two weeks. My grandparents from Taiwan moved in for the summer, my grandmother got sick, my grandfather got sick, my dad got sick, my mother is now sick. Four out of six -- I'm probably next.

At any rate, I've been thinking about concept promotion for the past few months. I've decided to finally verbalise and organise these thoughts (and yes, I do mean verbalise and then organise -- please bear with me).

The phrase "concept promotion" makes me sound all high and mighty, but before you begin to judge me, I will qualify my imaginary terminology with a link to a website with all sorts of inspiring ideas -- actually make that two links; check out Colour Me Katie again -- as well as a video which you've probably already seen, since it's been passed around for ages already:

Both Colour Me Katie and Volkswagen's The Fun Theory are about incorporating fun into ordinary aspects of our lives (although the ultimate goal of the Fun Theory is to change people’s behaviours for the better, according to their website). In the past, Volkswagen has used fun and whimsy to encourage people to do stuff like putting their rubbish in rubbish bins, taking the stairs instead of the escalator, and recycling their glass bottles.

I'm super fascinated by this -- using true creativity and real interaction to advocate certain actions and/or ways of thinking, instead of promoting commercial products, places, things, as is typical in most advertising/marketing initiatives you encounter. (Get it now? "Concept promotion"? Yes/No? On second thought, it may be a bit of a sloppy generalisation; I'll be happy to clarify if need be...) It's just all so interesting to me.

I mean, all too often, we resort to new technology, new products, new this, new that, new everything, to resolve problems that we encounter. Why don't we try to nab problems at the source instead? You know, look at human behaviours, the way humans think -- study and understand what it means to be human. And then go from there. (Aside: That's pretty much what simplicity is, isn't it? Understanding the area of interest and extracting the essential? This is why simplicity works.)

Clearly, people like Colour Me Katie (sorry, her name is officially Katie Sokoler, which I've mentioned in a previous post, but she's still "Colour Me Katie" in my head) and Volkswagen get it -- they know that an inherent part of human nature is our affinity towards fun. Sure, you can logically convince someone to do something; you can scare me into exercising, you can tug at my heartstrings and make me donate all my money to your charity, you can leave me with no other choice but to do what you're asking... but when fun is involved, when you make me actually want to do more? Now, that's a horse of a different colour.

P.S. Wow, I feel my Persuasion and Social Influence class slowly creeping up on me again.

P.P.S. I think my until-now-unexpressed-and-subconscious goal has been to use some sort of outdated expression in every single one of my posts. Have you noticed this recurring pattern?

P.P.P.S. Why, yes, I do think I'm British.

33: cars and freedom -- we're 'merican, y'all

Hear the roar of the crowds... the buzzing in the stadium... foreign accents galore... It's World Cup season, baby! This is exciting in its own right, of course, but also for Father Piñata in particular, because it means lots of exciting new advertising campaigns and television spots to be seen, discussed, and snarked at! (And oh, is there lots of snark ahead... Take it with a grain of salt, hah.)

For example, the Dodge Challenger "Freedom" commercial from W+K Portland debuted today after the first half of the South Africa-Mexico game, and I found it to be both fascinating and slightly effed up.

Actually, if I must be honest, I was a little offended the first time I watched it, simply because I feel somewhat of a greater though unfounded loyalty to England than to the U.S. (Hah, sorry -- no explanation there.)

But it also annoyed me that this commercial seems to have been developed from an overwhelmingly stereotypical American perspective of English culture, placing England in this outdated, stuck-in-the-past kind of light, which is really quite unwarranted and makes no sense whatsoever... Bah, do your research before you knock other countries for entirely unsubstantiated things. Not to mention, the entrance of George Washington and his men is a little doltish, like we're the jerks who think we own the world, with our -- with our -- "panache" was the word used in the press release.

Oh, don't mind me. I'm just irritated and bitter. This commercial makes Americans look silly. And forget about the fact that a good handful (nine of 23!) of the American players were trained in England. No big.

That said, at least the execution is nice. Lovely colors, the way the red pops against the muted green-gray background. Plus, given that this TV spot is clearly a "hoorah-let's-kick-England's-butt-tomorrow!" message of inspiration, you can't help but be a little more lenient on the ad as a whole... or something like that.

31: wieden+kennedy's new nike campaign

Finally home in Georgia after two neverending weeks of studying, finals, interviews, packing, and being sick. I'm going to make this brief so I can finish watching the Brooks & Dunn tribute concert (heh) and call it a night, but check out Nike/Wieden+Kennedy's new international "football" (soccer) campaign. Please also keep an eye out for my husband, Gael García Bernal.

LOVE. More details from W+K London's blog:

The epic TV spot, written by W+K London’s own seasoned veteran Stuart Harkness and fresh-faced youngster Freddie Powell, showcases a series of international football stars in their quest for victory and shows how one moment can be met with heroic achievement or defeat, sending a ripple effect across the globe. Some of the world’s best players, including Wayne Rooney (sporting a ginger beard), Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Fabio Cannavaro, Franck Ribery, Andres Iniesta, Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott, Patrice Evra, Gerard Pique, Ronaldinho, Landon Donovan, Tim Howard and Thiago Silva are featured. Special guest cameos are made by tennis legend Roger Federer, basketball superstar Kobe Bryant and even Homer Simpson. To bring the film to life W+K partnered with renowned Hollywood director Alejandro González Iñárritu.

29: bringing the ocean to ithaca

Thanks to Jess, my friend and resident partner in crime, I recently discovered Color Me Katie, a blog that has quickly risen to my top five list of favorite reads. Run by Brooklyn street artist Katie Sokoler, this blog is filled with color and imagination and playfulness and cheer... It's divine. It's charming. It's whimsical.

It makes us happy -- so happy, in fact, that Jess and I have decided to bring our own artistry to the streets (walls, sidewalks) of Cornell University in Ithaca, NY.

Here's what we started with:

Some of our ocean friends decided to join us. Our squid went for a swim in the rain.

The diver from Finding Nemo made an appearance.

A dolphin/porpoise joined the party.

Here we are! Look at you, Jess. You're a champ.

(P.S. Here's a quick side project we did, involving magical steps.)

Sparkle on, world. Sparkle on.

26: owning it

Last month, there were a lot of deaths at Cornell. It brought on a bunch of preventative measures, like all the professors reminding their classes of "resources" they could use, like the "Lift Your Spirits" rally on the Arts quad, like all sorts of Facebook groups in which community support is the theme of the day... But none of these measures were so controversial as the installation of temporary fences alongside the bridges all over campus.

This sparked the creation of Facebook groups such as "Don't fence us in!" as well as an outpour of actions to make the fences a little less of an eyesore. In the month that the fences have been constructed, I've seen fake flowers stuck in the chain links; little wooden signs of bees and butterflies and positive words; streamers; Hawaiian leis... I've seen fences painted red and blue and yellow and green, just to bring some life into the gray... Someone even bought several potted plants and real flowers to set along the bridges.

Yes, having fences to prevent people from jumping off bridges and killing themselves is a depressing notion. But it doesn't have to be just that. It could be so much more. Imagine a fence filled with "graffiti," all the things that make people smile. Bright ribbons. Key chains. A bulletin board of people who want to share a little bit of themselves with the campus, who want to bring a little beauty to a wall of mesh.

It's all about creativity. Taking something that exists and giving it a life of its own.

I wrote all of the above yesterday afternoon. Later in the evening, I attended a special Friday night Christian fellowship with lots of different Christian fellowships on campus. Afterwards, we had a post-fellowship activity that involved dividing into teams, targeting locations all over Cornell's campus, and chalking.

Chalking, for those of you who don't know, involves using chalk (duh) on sidewalks to publicize or promote events, organizations, ideas, and so forth. In light of the recent suicides here, and also because we wanted to spread love to the Cornell community, we decided to chalk encouraging Bible verses on North Campus, Central Campus, and in the Engineering and Ag quads.

My team was one of the two groups that went all the way up to North Campus, and we chalked on the sidewalks along Thurston Bridge. Materials: a big box of Crayola sidewalk chalk, our hands, four other lovely women with great minds and resourcefulness.

I offered to write and draw out all the text -- all my time spent drawing block letters has finally paid off... sweet -- and we each embellished. We made it a point to use a lot of colors, but we also ensured that they corresponded with the words (light blues and lavenders and soothing turquoises for "rest," for example), so that people would get the message even more. It was fun to consider what we know about people's attention spans and to then use that information to guide our chalking strategy.

I'm proud of all of us. We spent a considerable amount of time in the cold (34 degrees, man! and windy!), bruising and scratching our hands and knees, rubbing our fingers into chalk dust to blend colors and get them to stay... but it was well worth it to attract the attention of cars passing by, of students walking home, of kind words and open conversations with strangers. We poured our love out into our work, and I think it showed.

A senior girl walked by and commented that she absolutely loved what we were doing; that our chalking was one of the best she'd ever seen; that she was happy to see us bringing color to this place; that she was delighted that we were just hanging out and relaxing and spending time with friends; that she was glad to see us doing a little bit to make these fences our own. "Making these fences our own." What a great way to put it.

You might not be given the best or most favorable situation, resources, etc., but it's up to you to change that. Bring yourself to the project. Commit and give it your all. Make it your own. Content is important, but emotion -- expressing ours and appealing to yours -- is what makes things stick, what makes you even consider what we have to say in the first place.

Sadly, it's supposed to rain on Sunday (it's currently snowing now!), but with luck, tons of students, faculty, and staff will get to walk by it and appreciate what we've chosen to speak. Visit my Flickr to see more photos.

23: good ads make me happy -- fact

Charming, charming TV spot from Try, Oslo for Flax Instant Lottery:


It's a sweet little commercial. And um... scruffy foreign men make me happy too.

And here's one from Definition 6 for Coca-Cola (tell me this doesn't make you smile):


Nothing says "You are awesome" to the consumer like a person in a vending machine giving you complementary Coke and flowers...

(via Creativity Online)