MindComet

Galicia, Spain’s “City of Culture”

Photo courtesy Eisenman Architects

The Discovery Channel show “Build it Bigger” has my attention. Boyishly geeky host and architect Danny Forster treks around the world bringing his viewers to some of the world’s most difficult and colossal engineering projects. Not only does the show provide insight into each project’s architectural significance, but Danny gets down and dirty with the crew spraying cement, hanging drywall and constructing steel framing as these marvels take shape. (This job might be cooler than Samantha Brown’s travel gig.)

A recent show explored Galicia, Spain’s “City of Culture”, a complex series of buildings built on the site of a famous medelival pilgrimage destination on a small hill overlooking Santiago de Compostela. According to ARCspace.com, “The design evolves from the superposition of three sets of information. First, the street plan of the medieval center of Santiago is overlaid on a topographic map of the hillside site (which overlooks the city). Second, a modern Cartesian grid is laid over these medieval routes. Third, through computer modeling software, the topography of the hillside is allowed to distort the two flat geometries, thus generating a topological surface that repositions old and new in a simultaneous matrix never before seen.“

Location: Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Architect: Peter Eisenman
Tenants: Museum of Galician History and the New Technologies center, the Music Theater and Central Services building; and the Galician Library and Periodicals Archive
Status: under construction
Groundbreaking: 2000
Estimated Completion: 2010-2011
Size: one million square feet
Museum of Galician History: 172,000 square feet
New Technologies Center: 135,000 square feet
Music Theater: 220,000 square feet
Galician Library:122,000 square feet
Periodicals Archive: 86,000 square feet
Central Services building: 50,000 square feet
(Source: http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/build-it-bigger/project-pages/spain/spain.html)

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Posted by Marcelle Turner on Jun. 15, 2009

Pink is For Girls

Caption: “That’s why Lustre-Creme is pink. Because it’s made just for girls. If you don’t believe it, just breathe in Lustre-Creme’s pink fragrance. See, it’s a little too delicate for anyone but a girl! Now shampoo with pink Lustre-Creme and feel how truly soft your hair can be. So soft, it says “touch me.“ And he will!“

“Pink fragrance?“ Really? What does pink smell like?

A few years ago I started collecting old posters in shades of pinks, creams and browns. My intention was to decorate my guest room and the adjoining guest bathroom with a modern interpretation of a romantic, old-fashioned Valentine’s Day chocolate box. Can you picture it? Rich matte caramel-colored walls, sleek mahogany carved furniture, a silky off-white fainting couch, and little pops of pinks, whites, silver and gold. The bathroom would be drenched in warm creamy colors with an understated crystal chandelier, lots of candles, and vintage prints (like this one I found in a shop in New Orleans) to add some fun.

I’ve got all of the decor pieces I think I may need someday if I ever decided to create this room with the exception of one thing…Lustre-Creme Shampoo. How cool would it be if my female guests could have soft, pink-smelling Lustre-Creme hair?

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Posted by Marcelle Turner on Jun. 10, 2009

Why you need a kitchen extension phone

Close-up: Kitchen_Extension_Phone.jpeg

Adorably-dressed toddler sitting on the counter unsupervised next to an electric appliance, angelic schoolgirl mixing batter in a pretty red dress, and Mom in a pressed white apron and pencil skirt chatting on a bubble-gum pink telephone that matches her drapes. EXACTLY my life in an opposite alternate universe (LOL.) 

What I appreciate most about this ad is the copy. I know from movies, my education and real-life experience that the “Leave it to Beaver” lifestyle has it’s own set of assumptions, but this copy sounds like it was written for helpless damsels and not a head of household. Running a family is a full-time career, and looking good while doing it is a gift. I’m sure if this darling Mom could dress her children, bake a cake, start another one, do her hair, dress like a lady and keep a clean kitchen that she could also manage a stroll into the living room to co-ordinate a phone call to her repairman. Give the gal some credit! Love the ad, and the idea of convenience, but am sure thankful I’m living in the here and now. Image Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pinkponk

“Way Back Wednesday”
This is the second vintage ad post for Pink Lenses, so I’ve decided to make Wednesdays “Way Back Wednesdays”  when I will post and comment on an old school advertisement of some sort (#WBW for Twitter followers.)  If you have a favorite vintage ads please share!

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Posted by Marcelle Turner on Jun. 03, 2009

Nailed It

Ask me what I think about my career and you’ll probably want to gag. I love my job, my team, my customers and my profession. (Sick, right?) I’d never go as far to say that I don’t have days that I want to lock the front door and move to The Netherlands to sell cheese, but it doesn’t take much to remind me why the tough days at work build character. This video is one example.

One of the most awesome aspects of working in marketing and advertising is the abundance of creativity and humor our industry produces for each other. Lawyers, doctors and used car salesmen all have their own inside jokes and so do we! The difference with peer-to-peer comedy in marketing, however, is that we have the tools, the technology and the copywriters to express ourselves at a whole different level.

I love this video for it’s honesty, especially the line about “taking it in house.“ And, as painfully truthful as these scenarios are, hard core business development wouldn’t be exciting if each opportunity didn’t come with a little negotiation and a few, “are you serious?“ moments! The next time I want to start brushing up on my Dutch, I’ll find a little humor like this and remind myself that we’re all in this together, and that $12 tacos will never replace our premium filets.

Video Source: PR Squared, a marketing and PR firm from Texas.