Mario Amaya's Logo Mashups

Brazilian graphic artist Mario Amaya created a series of visual puns on corporate trademarks, tweaking text and logo elements of two separate brands to arrive at a compelling hybrid. Some of the logo mashups work so well that you have to look twice to realize what's been changed.


Although these graphic novelties were originally made for fun on his personal blog, they've made the rounds of cyberspace a few times over and do a great job of illustrating the power of corporate branding and psychological association. Even when the text accompanying a logo is completely contrary, the image still triggers familiarity in the mind.


Amaya recently added another batch to the series, and all links to all three pages are available below. His commentary on the whole project is worth reading as well.

Part 1 (April 2008) / Part 2 (May 2008) / Part 3 (December 2008)

Oliver Laric's 50 50

Berlin based artist Oliver Laric scoured YouTube for uploaded amateur videos of people singing, mugging, and dancing along to the music of rapper 50 Cent. He then edited fifty of those clips into a seamless medley of the hits "In Da Club," "Candy Shop" and "How We Do." The end result is a sublime mash-up of pop music fandom, from starry-eyed posing in suburban bedrooms and basements to jubilant sing-alongs at karaoke clubs and car stereos. Laric has done two versions of this project, using different clips for each.


50 50 - Original 2007 Version (2:06) / All-new 2008 Version (2:05)

He employed a similar technique to an installation piece on the Red Hot Chili Peppers song, "Under the Bridge." A note-for-note reconstruction of the radio hit was meticulously edited together from amateur instrumental versions found on video-sharing websites. An excerpt of the video piece can be seen at Laric's own website.

Girl Talk is a PC

Illegal Art's laptop mash-up maniac Girl Talk (a.k.a. Greg Gillis) appears in a commercial for Microsoft's recent "I'm a PC" ad campaign, in which he avows that making music with software and computers is the most punk rock thing you can do. His hotel room testimonial is interspersed with footage of him covering his laptop with plastic cling wrap in pre-show preparation as well as crowd-surfing on a sea of dancing fans. Microsoft briefly aired the spot on Comedy Central before uploading the 80-second ad to their official page on YouTube.

Update: Microsoft's done with the campaign but you can still watch the ad elsewhere on YouTube.

Good Copy Bad Copy

I get jazzed when I hear or see anyone putting the spotlight on the creative aspects of sampling and cut-and-paste technology, and not just towing the usual line about piracy and copyright violation. So I was especially thrilled to find Good Copy Bad Copy, a thoughtful and well made documentary that looks at the subject from both sides of the law, and with an international scope, to boot.

This insightful work explores the topics of hip-hop sampling, remix culture, file-sharing, movie piracy, and the current state of the music business. It also touches upon Russia's rampant DVD black market, Brazil's vibrant Tecno Brega remix scene, and the booming independent film industry in Lagos, Nigeria (Nollywood).

A number of notable names in the copyright debate are interviewed, including mash-up maestro Gregg Gillis (a.k.a. Girl Talk), Creative Commons founder Lawrence Lessig, Grey Album culprit Brian Burton (a.k.a. DJ Danger Mouse), MPAA chief lobbyist Dan Glickman, and Fredrik Neij (a.k.a. TiAMO) and Gottfrid Svartholm (a.k.a. anakata), operators of the Swedish Bit Torrent site The Pirate Bay.

The documentary initially aired on Danish television in 2007, but is now available to view for free on the official website. If you'd like to burn your own copy to disc and share it with others, the directors provide a torrent link for a XviD version. The film is well worth it, and if you have the means, I encourage you to reward their efforts through the optional PayPal donation. Even if you just throw two or three bucks their way (equivalent to the average DVD rental or on-demand title), it would be a nice show of support.

Creative Commons: A Shared Culture

The Creative Commons organization has posted a new online video to kick off their annual fundraising campaign. The 11-minute piece, entitled A Shared Culture, helps illustrate what the group is working toward. The project aims to expand upon the limited parameters of current copyright law and provide "a body of openly shareable and reusable creative work," to quote their own site. The short video was helmed by Jesse Dylan and features comments from the group's board members interspersed with a variety of images and music produced under Creative Commons licenses.

These folks are attempting some very progressive, and I believe, necessary revisioning in regards to creative culture in the digital age. There are additional videos on their website to further inform you of what Creative Commons is all about.

Sleeveface

The practice of sleevefacing has been kicking around the internet for a couple of years now, but with Halloween approaching, I figured I'd add to the hype and point out one of the easiest and cheapest costume ideas ever.

A sleeveface is a sight gag created by posing with an album cover. The most common approach is to use an LP with a headshot of the artist and hold the record sleeve in front of your own face. The illusion works best when your body lines up with key features in the album photo, like the neck, shoulders, or hair. There's even an entertaining online video to teach you the basic principles of the artform.

Some people get more involved, staging elaborate sleevefaces that incorporate other body parts, extra people, or specific outfits and props to enhance the effect.



You can peruse a wealth of sleeveface photos at the main site, the Flickr pool, or in the recently published book.

Diesel XXX Party Ad

The Italian brand Diesel made their name with designer jeans in the late 1980s and have since moved on to all forms of fashion apparel and accessories. The company is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary by throwing exclusive parties in seventeen major cities around the world.

A promotional spot was created by The Viral Factory using the theme of SFW Porn, in which pictures of hardcore pornography are altered enough to be considered safe for viewing at work. The images are typically drawn on using simple graphics software like MS Paint, creating amusing scenarios out of the body positions and facial expressions in the original photo.

The technique was adapted to moving images, with Biganimal creating clever animation and sound effects over a montage of pornographic movie clips. I've seen some creative and very funny still images of SFW Porn, but seeing it done over live action footage really takes it to another level. Hilarious stuff!

Garfield Minus Garfield

Garfield Minus Garfield is a brilliant and often surreal web project by Dan Walsh that completely removes the titular feline from his own comic strips. The fat cat's absence only adds gravity to the pathetic life of his owner, Jon Arbuckle. As the website says, "it is a journey deep into the mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness and depression in a quiet American suburb."

Garfield creator Jim Davis actually enjoys the concept, and Ballantine Books recently announced they will be publishing a collection of Garfield Without Garfield, featuring side by side comparisons of Walsh's doctored images and the original strips. More details can be found in a post on the GWG website.

Battle of the Album Covers

An inspired and entertaining bit of motion graphics from 2006 in which famous album covers come to life and duke it out. Directed by Ugly Pictures and animated by man vs. magnet (Matt Smithson). Watch it on Vimeo.