Crushed nuts grandad.

Welcome readers, new and old. Due to what I ashamedly admit was as an audacious stunt of Facebook promotion, the number of followers of thisblog is up 300% from my last posting. Soon we could be reaching the dizzying heights of double-digits. Therefore much more time and consideration has beenput into this posting than before, resulting nearly a full hour of laboriousresearch and writing.

I like to think of this experience as more than a blog, butthat of an elite group of globally like minded intellectuals who share a passionfor technology, forward thinking and cutting edge technology.  Which is why this week I have decided towrite about saucy British seaside post cards from the 1970’s. In particular those produced by James Bamforth, of Yorkshire by the artist Brian Fitzpatrick.

In my mind these postcards perfectly capture the famously classic British cheeky sense of humor that still pluses deep in the hearts of the British public, especially mine. To me these postcards are as iconic and as much of our cultureas red phone boxes, double decker buses, black cabs, afternoon tea and cricket.

Fitzpatrick’s fantastically illustrated work was full of double entendres and smutt.Featuring sexy young women,fat old wives, drunk and put-upon middle-aged husbands, vicars, and honeymooning couples.

Atthe height of their popularity, more than 18 million cards were being sold ayear and while people weren’t writing, sending or reading these cards they were spending their time watching the likes of Benny Hill, Sid James and the CarryOn team.

Then unfortunately during the 1980’s something calledpolitical correctness came along, people stopped buying the cards, the studiowas sold, Benny Hill was removed from our screens and Carry On movies were no longer made.

In the 90’s I was lucky enough to purchase some of theoriginal artworks before they were thrown on to the fire and lost forever. Theytake pride of place where they rightly belong, in my lavatory.

Today a renascence is occurring, thanks to the likes of Mike Myers as Austin Powers, The Sun, Peter Kaye, and good old fashioned British nostalgia, the cards are now back in reprint, on sale and in vogue.

DavrosHawkins

A little free time enabled me to finish another canvas in my collection of famous Brits. Today meet DavrosHawkins.

Old Boots and all.

After lots of rummaging around looking for a small piece of my youth, I found an old of pair of my football (soccer for my American friends) boots. These boots didn't just rekindle a desire to get back out there and play again - goodness knows what horrific damage I'd do to my body. But these boots stood and still stand for something much more than that.

The Adidas World Cup boots introduced for the 1978 World Cup are classic design icons and influenced what every player wears today. The black and white sole with red studs was the first time anything ever as brave, distinctive and literally out of the box (in more than one sense of the world) had ever been done before. Made from kangaroo leather for extra lightness - they never seem to help me jump any higher.

In many respects and forgive the pun again, these were game changers. Like Apple and Steve Jobs, Adidas did not just embrace the Germanic Bauhaus, function equals form design attitude with these boots, they knew that players wanted something more, they wanted style. To be able to wear a pair of boots like this you had to be good, like Muller, Beckebauer and Kempes and live up to the expectation of all they stood for. Either that or or you needed a lot of money.

Along with the new boots came the Adidas Tango Ball  (I kept one of these too), another much talked about classic. This ball took it's inspiration from the deep passion, emotion and elegance of Argentina. This pattern was used for five consecutive world cups and still in my opinion is yet to be beaten.

This was the year that Adidas really hit the nail on the head and reached their design apex. I wish the same could be said for the shameful England football team who never even made the finals that year, and have since failed followed a similar pattern in in every other tournament since. Perhaps us Brits are to "Stuck Up and Fuddy-Duddy" to be stylish enough to be wearing boots like these. They never really did the job for me either, but at the very least my feet may have looked the part.

When I see the players of today wearing boots all colors of the rainbow, there's probably even a rainbow colored pair out there for all I know. I yearn for the simpler, more classic, iconic days of when I pulled on my Adidas World cup boots, rolled the sides of my short shorts up to display as much thigh as possible, pulled on my skin tight shirt, stroked back my mullet over my ears and stepped on to the field ready for action and looking the business.


Next week I may rummage some more and perhaps review my blue paisley patterned Marks and Spenser Y-Fronts from 1972.

At long, long last. The flying car takes off.

Finally after millions of years of R&D, dozens of lost test drivers, and government legislation the flying car has finally been approved officially road and air worthy. Now old women, squirrels will not only have to look left, then right before crossing the street but upwards if they also feel like skipping. Not quite the si-if wonder I'd pictured, but still a flying car none the less. All your for just $279,000....The flying car see it here!

They do make them like they used to.

I thought the days of completely over the top, high budget, esoteric artsy commercials that make absolutely no sense were long gone. Then along comes L'Odyssee de Cartier, the name says it all.

A big two fingers up at the 99%ers.

Congratulations to who ever managed to sell this to the client, you must be one of the best in the business because in my humble opinion this is complete toss.

I certainly won't be rushing out to buy a new watch, nor will I ever make a commercial, or feature film to that matter, for this kind of budget.

I'm sure there are more effective and endearing ways of blowing this kind of money, or maybe just like the commercial...I'm still stuck in the late 90's.

Enjoy!

Sequentially Yours

I really liked the BBC video on Elliot Erwitt about the art of telling stories through photography. What his big secret? It could be the horn he carries on the end of his walking stick? No,  it all comes down to a lot patients and waiting for the moment.

Click here to view Sequentially Yours

eBay obsession.

Like many others am obsessed with eBay. Everyday I browse it's pages looking to make another shrewd investment on iconic design classics.
Today my new, old first generation I pod arrived. The day before, a Stay Puft money bank, then before that an inflatable Darlek, a Lego Yoda Alarm Clock amd so on...My wife thinks it's all of old junk but I know better :-p just wait when she sees what arrives next.

Weimaraner or Beavers?

Did we just buy two weimaraner puppies or were we off loaded with a couple of beavers someone wanted rid of. Look What the two cute bundles of joy have done to my door, and that's just for starters!

In Advertising, The Idea Is King.

All work and no play.

Means no blog, just a crappy/funny picture.

Ho not to give a presentation.

For all those people who have ever given or are about to give a Powerpoint/Keynote presentation. Here's exactly not how not to do it. Watch. Laugh and learn.

Super Bowl ads

While i sit here on my very own Super Bowl, I'm looking forward to seeing some great ads and a great game, in that order. These are the times when it's great to be an impartial Brit abroad, I can enjoy the game with out risk of a heart attack, need to smoke three hundred cigarettes and drink my self into a stupor - I'm sure my good friend Jeff Parson will do the drinking and smoking for me and then some.
I understand very little about American Football but I do also have to say some of these newfangled ads are even more confusing.

I'm back!

After a bout of serious illness - I never get ill, well not until now. I'm back! Not much of a blog but some serious fashion tips from Mr Seth and the 70's. Enjoy and perhaps wear.

It's All Over.

After 16 hours, Rosie's 8th birthday party is finally over. Only three police call outs and two arrests. Now, time for a quick tidy up. All in all I think things went pretty well.

Rosie's Party

Now fully ready for my daughter Rosie’s 8 year old birthday party/sleepover. Let the fun begin.

Great British grub.

Who says the British can't cook?
 After returning from my short London trip, I leave with an even wider waste line, a discovery that free wi-fi internet doesn't exist, places are far more crowded, cars are smaller, and yes, we Brits do have some rather fancy foods.
Familiarity does breed content. These once everyday foods now seem like luxury items. I did leave with several suit cases packed with stuff I never even really ate or craved until I left the country four years ago, and which I probably will never end up eating.
Here's just a few I snapped and ate along the way. 

No jellied eels, pigs trotters, dumplings, proper sausages, bacon or chocolate.
Eat your heart out Gordon Ramsey, Jamie Oliver and errr...errr some other famous British chief.
The diet begins 2012.

Good old Blighty.

The joys of fine English food! Yum :-D

Jolly holidays!

To all my friends out there in cyber and the real world have a jolly merry Christmas along with all the trimmings for 2012, from the Otter family.

Music to your eyes.

I put together this short clip of three of my three favorite pieces of modern film featuring musical composition. They are from from Slum Dog, Millionaire, Moulin Rouge and Submarine - three great movies. I love the direction, art direction, frame composition and music.

Beautiful.

I like Phil Hansen

Here's an artist I really like. I tried to work with him a years ago but unfortunately it never got to happen, super nice and interesting guy.
I hope his work inspires you as much as it does me. He looks at art and everyday life in a completely unique and different way, seeking inspiration and collaboration from friends and the social network.  

Here's his site. http://www.philinthecircle.com

In his words not mine "I frequently invite the audience to contribute in some way, nearly always breaking apart the artistic process in order to make it connect to a more immediate reality through video that shows manipulation of the medium from fragments into a unified whole. I draw inspiration from my collaborators’ experiences as much as they discover art through my work."
PS: I hope this is better than yesterday's blog. Although, I did kind of like the photograph of the reporter in the hat.