Monday, September 06, 2010
ArtPrize 2009
Oct 9, 11:30 AM by HM Copywriter
And the winners are …
As a resident of downtown Grand Rapids, I was more than pleased with the buzz and other benefits ArtPrize has bestowed upon our great city.
For those of you not familiar, ArtPrize it is an open art competition that was designed to draw worldwide attention to Grand Rapids—and to “reboot the conversation” between the art world and the public.
The beauty of the contest is its delicate marriage of venue and artist. This genius coupling not only drew thousands from around the world to contribute and appreciate an eclectic array of art, but also brought attention and revenue to galleries, businesses and restaurants in which the art was featured.
The rules were simple. Any artist—from established to emerging—had the chance to show their work. Any visitor viewing the work could vote. The votes determined who would win the largest art prize in the world—$250,000.
The results are in. Please let us know if you agree.
Better living through Dairy
Jul 2, 05:19 PM by HM Copywriter
What’s better than a holiday weekend? A holiday weekend that starts with a trip to the Dairy Queen, natch. Chris and Wendy took a little road trip to the DQ (Fulton Street, (just down the street from HM HQ) and came back with an armload of Blizzards. That coffee bar in the lobby works equally well for dishing up the ice cream.
The Hot 100.
Jun 25, 05:49 PM by HM Copywriter
There are bike rides. And there are bike rides. Our San Francisco-based AD Simon Bucktrout (that’s Simon on the left) finished the latter this month, when he and his teammate-slash-brother Justin completed a 100 mile loop around Lake Tahoe.
An extremely talented designer (he’s not reading this, is he?) and avid cyclist, Simon learned about the event, called America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride which is organized in conjunction with Team In Training, the national organization that raises funds and awareness for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
“I lost my stepfather, David, to Leukemia and this was a way to give a bit back. I’ve seen the terrible cost of leukemia and I wanted to do my bit.”
HM was happy to support Simon and Justin. We even had jerseys made in the Hanon McKendry colors.
The ride took just under six hours (incredible!), which gave the guys “time to think about a lot of stuff,” says Simon. Like how thin the air is at 7500 feet above sea level. “Your legs feel okay, but you don’t have the oxygen,” explains Simon.So is 100 miles of mountainous terrain any fun? “Oh yeah,” says Simon, “I call it life insurance. it’s good to feel your heart beat.”
Beautiful Day
Jun 5, 09:34 AM by HM Copywriter
It’s going to be a beautiful day. It’s the first day of Festival.
So here at Hanon-McKendry, we’re going to take a somewhat longer lunch break and immerse ourselves in music, art, and of course, food booths downtown.
To put in a plug for our friends at the GRAM, the Grand Rapids Art Museum has a great Ellsworth Kelly exhibit and a couple of beautiful Calder mobiles.
We’ll see you downtown.
Head start on summer
May 22, 09:06 AM by HM Copywriter
Someone (you know who you are) had a truly great idea: let’s kick off the holiday with a cookout on Thursday. So we grilled burgers and dogs, and everybody brought their favorite dish (amazingly, jellied eels didn’t turn up). We enjoyed the fresh air, ate slighly more than we should have, and the gang of thirty-odd (not thirty odd) people just hung out for a bit.
HM Copywriter : Chia Racer
"It's a Major Award!"
May 14, 02:37 PM by HM Copywriter
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? The same can be, and has been, said for art. More specifically, modern art.
Now for anyone who has ever painted a ceiling, or spent an afternoon in a pre-school, Jackson Pollock may not be at the top of your artistic genius list. In fact, some may be prompted to expunge the canvas with an old rag and dab of mineral spirits rather than hang it above their mantel. Yet, when his works were first displayed in New York in 1947, one European critic announced that, compared with Pollock, “Picasso becomes a quiet conformist – a painter of the past.”
Hmm?
Hey, I’m not above it. You’re reading the copy of a girl who once referred to a living art sculpture as “that big purple plant thingy-dingy.” And commented how wonderful it was that a couple would “sacrifice so much wall space to display their three-year-old’s finger paintings.” Oops.
Now, I can’t be blamed. I was raised in the Wenona Beach trailer park. Art to us was Venus De Milo provocatively perched in strings of dripping oil. Until I was 28, I thought the Louvre was a place the French deposited their ….. well, you know.
So, when TAXI’s Paul Lavoie and director Azazel Jacobs set out to attract “my people” to the MoMa, I was intrigued. It seems Frank was as well.
Cindi Walther: HM Copywriter
Fare thee well
May 11, 09:42 AM by HM Copywriter
Where exactly did the semester go? That’s the question posed not only by most of the Hanon McKendry staff, but by our esteemed intern Brian.
Last week, we took a few minutes out of our (as always) hectic day to wish him well and to thank him for all of his hard work. And we’d like to thank Suzy Sammons and Jane Richtsmeier for generating all that work.
We’re going to miss Brian’s laid back demeanor and “whatever you need” work ethic. On Brian’s agenda: gainful employment and learning to keep his eyes open when he gets his picture taken.
Top 10 Mother's Day Gift Suggestions
May 4, 02:44 PM by HM Copywriter
For many of you (Men) this may come as a complete surprise.
Mother’s Day is next week. May 10th to be exact. Now before you go off not planning your last minute trip to the corner drug store, I have a Billie Maze inspired suggestion—order now!
The world wide web is a wonderful, whimsical, way of wooing the woman who wovingwy waised you. Jewelry, flowers, day spa gift certificates, and even vacuum cleaner bags can all be purchased with just a click of the mouse. That, and a valid Visa, Master, AMEX, and sometimes Discover. The secret is knowing your audience.
This is the woman you lived with for, I dunno, 18 years. For you perceptive types, picking out the perfect gift should be a snap. For others, a broken zipper snagged on ball of frayed, unlaundered sweat shirt. Seriously?
If you fit into category B, might I make a few suggestions.
1. Call your dad. It’s likely he dropped the ball at Christmas, and mom has been relentlessly reminding him every day since.
2. Call your sister. She may have few too many ideas in mind, and wouldn’t mind tossing you a bone. Likely not her patented tear inducing bone, but a bone none the less.
3. Look up a top ten Mother’s Day gift list on the internet. Wait, isn’t this supposed to be one? My bad. Ask Men has a good one. Except the bonus suggestion. Very disturbing.
4. And last, but not least, ask the mom. Yes, you can do that. It’s the 2000’s. But be prepared. Depending on your current income and your behavioral past, things could get pretty pricey.
Reporting from high atop the HM building in beautiful DT Grand Rapids, MI. I’m Cindi Walther wishing you and yours a Happy Mother’s Day!
Caution: Children at Work
Apr 30, 08:25 AM by HM Copywriter
We like to think that we retain a childlike sense of wonder (not to be confused with being juvenile). So we’re pretty big on Take Your Child To Work Day. This year, we went all out. Not only did kids from 5 to 14 get do find out what their parent does all day, they also got a crash course in how to do it. Kids learned about social media sites and SEO (thanks, Paul Ferrier), as well as writing Creative Strategies, Concepting, and Art Direction. Sadly, we can’t use any of their great work, or we’ll run afoul of Child Labor laws. But everyone (grownups included) had a lot of fun, and a lot of pizza.
Next year, we’ll have them retouching images in Photoshop and creating Pay-per-click campaigns!
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