With Hurt Locker looking like an almost-sure thing for Best Picture, we thought we’d dig up one of the director’s attempts at the fine genre known as “advertorial.” Specifically, a nine-minute spot called Mission Zero that Kathryn Bigelow made a couple years back for the tire company Pirelli (remember them?) which features a bright yellow Ferrari, an omnipresent squad of assassins and a typically hardass Uma Thurman. It was passed over by the Academy, presumably because they wanted more on the political implications of Ferrari chases.

Watch it here»

Although we have neither tobogganing nor whisky-drinking in our immediate future, we couldn’t help but admire the style on display in this vintage Seagram’s spot, dug up thanks to Vintage Ad Browser.

You can make all the fondue jokes you want—and yes, we’ve thought of a couple—but that cableknit turtleneck is one of the reasons we’re hoping 1972 makes a comeback. Not all of it (the belt, for instance), but there’s plenty of awesome stuff to be dug up.

That headband, for instance, is probably a pretty big hit on the Williamsburg vintage circuit by by now.

The biggest problem with rugged items is that sometimes, they outlast your desire to wear them. That’s why you have more old jeans in your closet than old undershirts and why they’re so hard to part with—after all, they still have some good wear left in them.

Luckily, the grunge-inflected denim-lovers at Volcom have an idea. In the spirit of denim-based charity, they’re teaming with the National Coalition for the Homeless to collect as many wearable pairs of jeans as possible and direct them to less sartorially demanding hips. Drop off a pair at a local retailer and you’ll be entered to win a year’s supply of Volcom stock.

It’s called Give Jeans a Chance and it’s a marketing gig, make no mistake—looking up local retailers yet?—but as long as it’s helping out the less fortunate, we can’t say we mind. We’re even willing to indulge in the animated psychedelic promo video…provided it’s for a good cause.

See the video here»

The trench coat is already one of the more iconic items in the menswear canon, so it hardly needs the ad treatment—but it couldn’t hurt.

Today, Burberry launched a site called Art of the Trench dedicated to classic outerwear piece in all its forms. You can see street style shots from all over—including this one from Mr. Schuman himself—which should give you some ideas on how to style yourself. We prefer a dark navy or black like the gentleman here, but dig around the site and you’ll find plenty of other ideas.

As for the timing, it might have done us a bit more good a few weeks back…but we’re not complaining.

The ad world is still figuring out exactly what to do with the iPhone, but an early test case was unveiled last night. Instead of a print campaign or a TV spot, the campaign for the new Volkswagen GTI is leading off with an iPhone game.

Real Racing GTI is a standard 3D racer—remarkably similar to the unbranded Real Racing, except that winning enters you into a weekly sweepstakes and every car in the game is Volkswagen’s new 2010 GTI. That means you’ll get a firsthand, mobile look at the dashboard, and no matter how you drive, a VW always wins.

As a game, it’s not much to write home about; but as marketing, it’s one of the bolder moves we’ve seen this year. VW drivers are a pretty tech-y bunch to begin with, giving away a car a week will draw a fair number of them to the app, and in the process both the GTI and the iPhone will get a whole lot of converts. Maybe the Android folks should give Vespa a call.

Fabric scraps are having quite a year. First, they gave Looptworks a business model, and now they’re giving New Balance a few hundred shoes to play with.

This week, New Balance is launching the 574 Clips collection, a set of 480 shoes stitched together from pig-suede scraps in the semi-iconic 574 silhouette. And since they’re hyping their American manufacturing cred—as well they should, given the sneaker landscape—each pair will have “USA” stitched onto the tongue, courtesy of Lawrence, MA. (O amber waves of suede?)

Of course, just throwing up a few billboards wouldn’t be scrappy enough, so they’re getting a little creative»

David Shrigley has amassed a fairly sizable following thanks to his net-friendly pics—a few good examples are here, here and here—so it’s hardly surprising he’d get picked up for a graphic tee or two. The surprise is the company he’s signed on for it: one Pringle of Scotland, the knitwear mark of choice for most Anglophiles. Shrigley’s even cooking up a print ad for Pringle, which might be turn out to be the most mainstream exposure he’s ever gotten—aside from the odd indie folk video.

Of course, since Shrigley’s niche lands somewhere between street art, web-comics and art brut, we’re guessing he didn’t mind adding t-shirts and billboards to the list.

iPhone art is still a pretty new game, but so far the big innovators are coming from Madison Avenue, not Silicon Valley.

This GeoArt app was cooked up for MoMa by a tech-minded ad man named Daniel Shapiro, but it’s more the kind of thing you’d expect to find in the portfolio of an up-and-coming developer. Load it up the next time you’re out for a walk and it’ll trace an etch-a-sketch line along your exact path. After a few weeks of walking, you’ll end up with a haphazard, arbitrary and intensely personal set of scribbles, printed out bearing the MoMa logo and the slogan “Art is Everywhere.” It’s a cool gadget that managed to slip through the cracks under the guise of advertising, a trend we’re hoping to see more of as the ad world limbers up. How does it help out MoMa? We’d call it the Medici business model…

Mind-boggling surrealism is nothing new in Japanese ads, but it usually tends to the hyperactive, instead of the meditatively crazy.

This Softbank spot comes from Spike Jonze and it seems to have caught him in the middle of a domestic streak. It focuses on the strangely tender relationship between the paternal Brad Pitt and his charge, an infantile Sumo wrestler. We’ve watched it five times now, and for some reason we can’t look away. We’re not sure if it’s the relationship we want with our bank, but it’s nice to see Mr. Jolie show his non-bloodthirsty side.

See the spot»

You may not have tuned in last night, but if you’re following the glossies, Mad Men is just about everywhere. And not just in the editorials.

This BMW spot in Vanity Fair co-opts a bit of Sterling Cooper cachet, but it’s one of the first spots we’ve seen to embrace the show’s Kennedy-era milieu so whole-heartedly. It’s an odd fit for BMW, since Mr. Draper himself wouldn’t have much use for a German car, and the 3 series in the spot couldn’t be farther from the land-yachts that were in style at the time. And since so much of the Mad Men is about resisting the future, we’re not quite sure what to make of it. Maybe they’re pushing the manual transmission?

The appeal of army boots is as much functional as sartorial, so the usual ad tricks—people wearing them, for instance—don’t work quite as well. Luckily, you can always get creative…

These spots for the French Legion-approved Palladium Boots line explore New York’s abandoned spaces, some of which are pretty fantastic and all of which require some pretty rugged footwear. The campaign comes with a documentary on a few of the more interesting spots, and it’ll presumably tell you how to find them in the bargain. And if the style seems familiar, there’s a reason: the whole thing was cooked up by Virtue, the advertising wing of Vice Magazine. No wonder Brooklyn’s so well-represented…

Richard Haines, our favorite sketch-blogger, just raised his profile another notch. On the heels of his residency at the J. Crew liquor store, he’s got a series of ads for pop-up flea vets 3Sixteen currently going up all over our fair city.

The spot—seen here in its natural habitat—couldn’t be simpler. It’s just Haines doing what he does best: a colored sketch of a well-dressed man. And if that man happens to be wearing a certain brand’s latest offerings…that’s just the magic of business.

See the poster and a video after the jump»

We’ve been covering the beard revival pretty thoroughly, but it may have finally broken through to the mainstream.

Following Alice Cooper, Iggy Pop and Cheap Trick, the gentlemen of ZZ Top are taking on model duties for John Varvatos’ latest campaign, a sign that the fur-chinned community is finally getting some representation in the industry.

Can a Beardhead endorsement deal be far behind?

Hey, Blondie: The JC Report sings the praises of Ms. Debbie Harry. [JC Report]

I Wish I Could Quit You: Michael Arrington has had enough of the iPhone. Expect some blowback from this one. [TechCrunch]

Bat Boy Lives: The Weekly World News archives go online. [Gawker]

No Bark: Creature featurer Guillermo del Toro on the enduring appeal of the vampire. Apparently Lord Byron has a lot to answer for. [NYTimes]

Takashi Murakami’s ongoing Louis Vuitton collaboration has already yielded some strange fruits, but he shows no signs of letting up. This video is the second instance of his Miyazaki-esque animated side in the service of a strangely tongue-in-cheek style of branding.

The video—on display now in Japanese LV stores-is a fairly straightforward advertising fable—a young girl is transported to 1890s Paris to fall in love with a 14-year-old Gaston Louis Vuitton—but it’s a good deal more psychedelic than is strictly necessary, and Murakami’s mushroom shaped creations and jittery electronic strums are a bit too unsettling for the story to fit nicely in the inviting world of advertising.

We’ve got the sneaking suspicion someone’s trying to pull something, but we’re not sure who it is.

See the video»

The new face of Louis Vuitton has most recently cycled from counter-revolutionary heads of state to island-hopping Scottish nationalists, but apparently they’ve now turned their attention to the heavens. The latest Liebowitz-lensed spot brings together original moon-man Buzz Aldrin, Challenger favorite Sally Ride and noted Tom Hanks-lookalike James Lowell for a bit of star-gazing, with the help of their NASA-approved Vuitton-print bags.

We’re guessing Chuck Yeager was too grizzled to be involved.

Andy Spade & Anthony Sperduti of Partners & Spade

America’s in need of a new image…but come to think of it, so is advertising. So mixing a little patriotism and a little PR magic is just good business.

This month’s PAPER Magazine (via WBE)mixes the two in just the right proportion, with a series of editorial images promoting a kinder, gentler image of America. This “Sorry” banner comes courtesy of Andy Spade & Anthony Sperduti—known to some as Partners & Spade—and Shepard Fairey pops in for a Soviet-styled ode to wind power, but the real muscle here comes directly from Madison Ave.

Naturally, there are a lot more doves than hawks, but the real question isn’t what this means for America but what it means for advertising. Once ad men start unleashing their inner RFKs, who knows what kind of full-pagers we’ll start seeing.

A few more»

Ad men have been enjoying quite a bit of attention, so the time is ripe for a gushy documentary covering some of the industry’s greatest hits. Who came up with that “got milk” business, anyway?

Art & Copy (via Josh Spear) tracked down the creatives in question—in this case, Rich Silverstein and Jeff Goodby—along with a slate of other names like George Lois of the famous 60s Esquire covers and Hal Riney of the 1984 Reagan campaign. Together they’re responsible for some of the most iconic images of the past 50 years. We’re thinking of the “I Heart NY” logo, the Energizer bunny, and the more recent dancing silhouette iPod ads…but we’re sure you have a favorite of your own.

It’s not bad as a profile of an industry, and we’re sure there are more than enough outsized personalities to fill up 90 minutes—especially whoever was unselfconscious enough to offer the quote, “we’re doing exactly the same thing as the guys who were painting on caves.”

A master marketer should have known how that was going to sound.

See the trailer after the jump»

We were never really clear on the perks of being a socialite. Sure, the parties are a blast sometimes—but so are lots of parties. And they seem to spend so much time getting ready…

But this makes a bit more sense. We’re not terribly interested in Kay Rodriguez, the designer behind these snaps, but the model happens to be one Ms. Jessica Joffe, occasional Kemptress and general woman-about-town. And, dare we say it, she’s never looked better.

And being a socialite-model…well that’s a different game entirely.

One of big takeaways from Battle of the Toms is how genuinely strange Thom Browne.

Compare this ad with some of Tom Ford’s glossy stills. Ford is exactly what we expect from a men’s designer: European influences, a gay sense of irony, and a generally hypermasculine style. Advertising aside, he’s not that different from Valentino, Hedi Slimane, or any of the designers that built the industry. He’s selling couture and sex together, just like everyone else in Bloomingdale’s.

But Thom Browne seems to be working from a different blueprint»

Branding firms are still figuring out how to make a web video people will actually want to see, but the formula isn’t so complicated. Just find something worth watching and figure out some way to fit your product in—preferably something other than an opening title card.

Ito Partners gets it right with this series of Vimeo spots for Morgans Hotel Group. Ito lined up a series of relatively unknown acts to play sets in Morgans Hotel rooms, giving viewers an impromptu concert and a look at the soothing surroundings at the same time. And, in case you were wondering, the acoustics at the Royalton are surprisingly good.

See the New York video»

The world of sponsored microsites is usually pretty high tech, but leave it to AXE to turn a state-of-the-art work of web technology into something resembling a public access variety show.

Perhaps more explanation is required»

Miller High Life inspires a lot of loyalty these days, and no small part of it is thanks to legendary documentarian Errol Morris. A few years back, Morris lent his keen eye and populist cred to a series of TV spots that did more good for the brand than a celebrity endorsement ever could. Morris just put all 80 spots on his website, and we must say, they’re every bit as fantastic as we remember.

More on the ads that made the High Life, along with a few choice clips»

We saw Killspencer on UrbanDaddy a few days ago, but sometimes it takes a bit of video to get our attention.

The west-coast marque makes bags out of discontinued military tarps—not a bad gimmick, but a little advertising never hurt anyone. So we were even more impressed when we ran across this video, we were understandably intrigued.

We could have done with a little less racking focus…but nobody’s perfect. The music (made from the rhythmic clicks and whirrs of a sewing machines) and the shots of the merchandise (always in quick shots or very close up) add up to a surprisingly effective spot that shows very little of the actual merchandise.

Of course, if people want to see what’s for sale, they can always look at the website. Like most spots, all this one really needs to get across is excitement.

See the video»

Normally ads work by introducing you into a glossy world in which innocents are tormented by scantily clad women and hipsters run in place, but sometimes you have to go for the bizarre classical reference.

The message, as far as we can tell, is not to trust Greeks bearing DHL packages.

For all our gushing about ACL’s American List, we’re more interested in how things are made than where. Of course, it’s easier to keep an eye on things if they’re domestic, but really we just want to see what those factories really look like.

Patagonia is giving us the next best thing with their latest site, the Tin Shed (via Josh Spear). It’s not exactly complete transparency, but it gives a peek into the early history of the brand, which turns out to look a little different than you’d expect.

More on the Tin Shed»

Mining subcultures is a tricky business, and nobody knows it better than Converse. They were already known as a hipster brand…and a whimsical web video full of Williamsburg landmarks probably isn’t helping anything.

The delicate balance of marketing»

The brewery tour is a long-standing highlight of masculine tourism, but the days of wooden kegs and sketchy tour guides may be coming to a close.

This pic is from is an experimental marketing plan for Heineken that would put visitors through a veritable Haunted Mansion of Heineken, including a psychedelic screening room, interactive tasting desks, and a star-shaped bar area that looks like it came straight from the notebook of an interior design class.

Sadly, none of it’s real yet, but we’re more than a little bit jealous. How long do we have to wait before ridiculous things like this start actually happening again?

Take the tour»

Ignoring where things come from is a long proud tradition in this country, and we’d like to keep it that way. Especially with regards to the ocean…

The Surfrider Foundation disagrees, and is smuggling packages of beach debris into farmer’s markets to make a point about oceanic pollution. We imagine the usual greenmarket crowd is pretty open to it, but we can’t help but wonder if they’re being a bit too aggressive. It’s one thing to see something this gross on a website, but accidentally tossing it into your totebag could be genuinely off-putting…and not necessarily in a good way.

Also, we’re never eating seafood again.

As brands go, Obama’s doing pretty well, so it’s no surprise companies are jumping at the chance to associate with him. And if he’s the first slim suit president, there’s also the risk of becoming the first IKEA president. He’d better tread carefully…

In an attempt to sway the new President, the Swedish design magnate has set up a faux-oval office in D.C.’s Union Station to show what a Swede-furnished executive branch would look like. The web component is a virtual Oval Office dollhouse, but we have to say, without rounded couches, the options are pretty limited.

In this case, we’re hoping Obama goes with something a bit more… convervative.

Burger King has been pretty clever about advertising, but their latest stunt might be the best corporate use of social media we’ve ever seen. The bad news? You’re about to have a hard decision to make.

Instead of making the usual passive app, Burger King is declaring all-out war on Facebook, offering a free whopper in exchange for de-friending ten of your least favorite online acquaintances. You’ll get a coupon, they’ll get an impolite note, and they’ll probably never speak to you again.

The brilliant move here is that Burger King isn’t playing nice: they’re asking you to become less engaged with the online community they’re using to promote themselves. Naturally, Facebook is big enough that they aren’t particularly worried—but if this kind of app gets more popular, maybe they should be.

If you were wondering about the legacy of those Tom Ford ads…we might have something.

The German exotica shop Condomi must have decided their old bags weren’t eye-catching enough, so they designed totes depicting thong-clad crotches, with a particularly well-placed handle. It’s a good way to spread word of mouth, but we can’t help but wonder how many of their more timid customers are turning down bags at the register.

And if this is what they do with a bag, we’d hate to think what they do with a billboard…

We ran across this highbrow Volkswagen spot from the same dour German ad house that brought you the suicidal calorie. The tagline is “Absurdly low consumption,” but again, we didn’t expect things to get quite this bleak.

This time around, it’s more of an existential bleakness. Gas station attendants leave empty, headless lives while (in the Dalí version) pumpmen cry glass tears into a desert pond. See the nightmarish dreamscape that fuel efficiency has created! SUV ads always seemed to resemble sitcom interstitials, so VW is going the opposite way, creating a world with no cars, people, or even buildings.

Then again, we always love a good Magritte homage.

See their take on Dalí»

Advertising tends to traffic in generically comforting scenes—a sun-dappled Dr. Pepper-equipped picnic, for instance—but you can’t stay on the bright side forever, and occasionally things get genuinely dark. Usually in Germany.

This ad, from Berlin’s BBDO, emphasizes Pepsi Max’s one calorie by illustrating the bleak, soul-deadening isolation of the one remaining calorie. (The caption reads, “One very very very lonely calorie.”) By printing the ad on what looks like the outside of a paper bag, they also manage to pin down the “eccentric loner” demographic, something Pepsi usually struggles with.

We assume it’s the same firm that brought you the Home Depot slogan: “Because she’s never coming back.”

It’s been a long, long time coming…but Diddy’s cologne is finally here. It’s called “I Am King,” and so far, the marketing strategy seems to be coopting as much civil rights language as he can…but, you know, on a yacht.

The TV spot—which, Diddyblog informs us, is dedicated to Barack Obama, Muhammad Ali, and Martin Luther King Jr.—looks a lot like a late 90s rap video. Diddy was probably running out of excuses to ride jetskis in a tuxedo and nuzzle awkwardly with heavily coiffed models. (Good thing he had something to fall back on.)

But it’s not all social progress. Mr. Combs also describes it as his “audition tape” for becoming the new Bond. Of course, he may have to do a bit more than stare blankly towards the camera if he’s going to clinch the post. And we imagine Mr. Craig might have something to say about it.

(This post is dedicated to Rick Astley, Ty Cobb, and U Thant.)

See the spot for yourself»

Canadian Club just released an update to the Goldwater-chic ad campaign that caught our eye back in January. This time, they’re circulating stirrers with mustaches at the top, so you can give yourself a small Poirot-style ‘stache or give a bit of hair to your favorite magazine fodder.

We’re glad to see anything that brings more mustaches into the world, but this has more behind it than you might think.

Get the full story here»

As it turns out, this doesn’t come from Apple itself but from a very devoted Japanese farmer who put stickers on them halfway through the season. Still, it’s only a matter of time before the marketers of the world get their hands on our fruit.

Maybe we’ll just eat the logos first.

Quiksilver isn’t the only line with a forward-thinking label coming along for the ride. Adidas has managed to pull the same move without going to the bother of actually producing any shoes, or even designing shoes could possibly be produced. After all, why go to the trouble of putting together samples when all you really need are a few shiny pictures to send around the blogosphere?

Vagant let us know about this promotion, which comes courtesy of German sneakerhead Fritz Träumer. There’s the ultra-green sneaker, the Kraftwerk-inspired sneaker, and a few more, but we couldn’t help wondering…weren’t you supposed to put these on your feet at some point?

See the rest of the sneakers»

Although you might not know it from the copy, advertising is spreading out. It’s not just television and print anymore; it’s viral stunts, sponsorships, naming rights, and product placement. The world is getting more media from more angles and advertising is coming along for the ride. Anything you can do, you can do for advertising. All you have to do is tack a logo on the end.

Given that, we’re happy to see videos like this. We’d never heard of Bowmore before, but they just showed us the perfect way to polish our shoes.

And that has to count for something.

See the video after the jump»

Ah, perfume ads. Just when you think they’ve hit their peak…it turns out they’re just getting started.

It looks like the lovely Ms. Mendes’ banned Calvin Klein ad kicked off a whole new genre of fragrance ad: the black and white softcore bedroom shot. This version comes from French marque Guerlin, who chose a nude, reclining Natalia Vodianova to showcase the mysterious effects of their new Shalimar scent.

Of course, the ad is French not American, so they skipped the controversy and went straight for the nude banquette shots. Ah, la vie en rose…

See the video here»

Agent Provocateur has been pushing the envelope with interactive promotion (with good and bad results), but they’ve finally outdone themselves. Their latest temptation is a video choose-your-own-adventure, guiding you through a mansion of decadence inhabited by a coven of scantily clad witches, a bleeding tomato, a virgin in peril, a half-nude albino and a conquistador. The goal is to save the virgin without succumbing to sexy enslavement but the real point is just to admire the scenery. As you can imagine, there’s a lot to take in.

Look a little closer»

The tastefully oblique web video is quickly becoming a requirement for fledgling labels. Luckily, we’re always looking for something to watch.

The latest one, for Justin Timberlake’s upcoming William Rast line, finds Mr. Timberlake and model Erin Wasson trying out their Tennessee accents and handheld camera skills, while sporting a slightly dated military look. So far, they’re just professing love for each other and repeating the name “William Rast” over and over, but only three of the nine clips have been released.

Of course, Wasson broke her foot filming the spots, so we can expect some action at some point. The third clip lifts its music and voiceover from Badlands, possibly hinting at the direction the next six clips will take, but we don’t expect anything too dark from the former Mouseketeer.

At least, not until the next Timbaland collab comes through.

See Mr. Rast in action, after the jump»

The Be Kanye website has finally launched and we feel we can now say, without fear of contradiction, that Mr. West has proved himself a master of web design, as well as rap production, product placement, lyrics, television, men’s style, and (why not?) polevaulting. We’re especially impressed by the “Not Tested on Animals” button in the lower left that rolls over to a tiger.

We were impressed when the ads first dropped, but Kanye appears to have a few more tricks up his sleeve.

Not all of J. Crew’s collaborations are on the racks. This week, they launched a microsite with GQ dedicated to “rebel style,” with J. Crew merch giveaways on the side. (At least you’ll know where to spend it.)

The premise of the microsite is a 30 day crash course in becoming a “well-dressed rebel.” We aren’t sure if Shia LeBeouf is quite what comes to mind when we hear “well-dressed rebel,” but their guest, Scott Sternberg of Band of Outsiders, is a little closer to the mark. The biggest saving graces are the Vice Records soundtrack and bizarrely Godardian titles, both of which give the enterprise a lot more cred than it deserves.

There are a few unexpected tidbits, like Sternberg’s preference for short-sleeved dress shirts, but so far, the advice is pretty much what you’d get from the magazine—like popping the top button, sticking with upscale cotton suits, and curveball footwear. Then again, the site only releases one video a day (starting the day you sign up), so we’ll have to wait until September to get to the thrilling conclusion.

With sponsored mini-films becoming increasingly popular, it’s worth taking notice when one really works.

Our pick would be The Key To Reserva, a short for Friexe Champagne directed by Martin Scorcese and written by the typically meta-textual Ted Griffin, previously responsible for 2001’s Ocean’s Eleven. The short has been around for a while, but it didn’t get as much notice as it deserved, and it’s past due for another look.

As you might expect from his AmEx commercials, Scorcese steals the show by playing a slightly more jittery and nonsensical version of himself. As he explains to Griffin (also playing himself), he’s stumbled on three and a half pages of a lost Hitchcock movie called The Key to Reserva, and he’s planning of filming it as an act of film preservation. If you’ve ever wondered what three minutes of out-of-context suspense looks like, you’re about to find out.

More on the bizarre short»

It looks like Kempt favorite Eva Mendes has dabbled in advertising once again, this time in a nipple-baring spot for Calvin Klein’s Secret Obsession. In the grand tradition of perfume ads, the product is the least interesting part, but this particular one was so “provocative” that it managed to get rejected by every network, and subsequently barred from broadcast. Oops…

Gawker suggests, the ad may have been intended as unairable to cause a scandal and raise more publicity for the brand. If so, we can only applaud it as a step in the right direction. Any marketing strategy that involves showing beautiful women’s breasts to the internet is all right in our book.

See the ad for yourself»

David LaChapelle has done a lot—from a very respectable MTV catalog to a long, long history taking pictures of beautiful women—but this is the first time he’s turned his attention to a liquor bottle.

The bottle in question is Remy Martin’s V.S.O.P., a cognac aimed at the nightlife crowd, so it makes sense that they turned to Jazz Age icon Josephine Baker for inspiration. The overall effect may be more Miami than Paris, but we aren’t complaining. In fact, we like the way this trend is headed. Before too long, we’ll be seeing Takashi Murakami’s take on a Sapporo can and Belvedere bottles decorated with Terry Richardson’s nudes.

We can’t wait.

We like to think of ourselves as above most advertising head games. A shoe is a shoe, and all the flashy endorsements in the world won’t change what it is.

But these are still pretty sweet.

Liquid Generation’s latest video covers the best of the last 20 years of sneaker commercials, from Patrick Ewing’s Adidas line to MC Hammer’s British Knights spot.

And, of course, high-top after high-top.

He’s had incarnations as a DJ, scenester, and teddy bear, but Mr. Lagerfeld has finally managed to render us speechless. We will refrain from translating the text, except to say that the ad touts the necessity of neon-yellow vests. And we don’t understand it any more than you do.

Karl Lagerfeld has been comfortably dwelling in self-parody for some time now, but even this seems excessive. We can only assume this is part of the sentence for the French equivalent of a DUI…either that or the man has finally taken leave of his rocker.

With Lagerfeld, it’s impossible to tell.

We’ve seen a lot of weird endorsements, but we’ve never seen anything quite like this.

Ostensibly, it’s an ad for Absolut Vodka, but the Absolut name isn’t mentioned until the final shot and vodka isn’t mentioned at all. It looks like an infomercial but the product is not just imaginary but also impossible. And why are there flying tigers? How could this have happened? How could a video this strange not only come into existence, but be produced and aired on a commercial scale?

The answer, of course, is Kanye.

We examine the curious Mr. West»

Our friends at UrbanDaddy have a set up a little site with Belvedere Vodka called Keys to the City with video interviews from New York nightlife pros. Our personal favorite among the stories comes from the Pink Elephant guru David Sarner, who takes the cake with his story of working as a bouncer at 54 while he was still in high school. There’s also a contest involved, which you might want to check out if you happen to be in New York.

More on the Keys to the City»

First Gorbachev and Keef, and now the Coppolas. That’s right, LV has netted another one.

The Louis Vuitton Core Values campaign rolls along, this time scooping up the estimably rotund Francis Ford Coppola and his winsome daughter for yet another Annie Liebowitz shot. The core value this time around is travel, contrasted with earlier themes for Andre Agassi (a well-shaved head) and Keith Richards (healthful old age).

More on the father/daughter ad»

Labels tend to stomp around the fashion scene without much attention to us mortals. More often than not, they’re more concerned with keeping their lapels straight than endearing themselves to the average consumer. After all, what have they given you? You know, aside from all the clothes.

Well, 55dsl is getting ready to give a little back. On June 1st, they’re going to be hiring for the always-vital position of Junior Lucky Bastard, which means spending the summer traveling the world, drinking in the sweet nectar of youthful lust, and absorbing the jealousy of deskbound flunkies everywhere.

How to apply»

It looks like Mr. Teller is up to his old tricks again, seducing the lovely Ms. Maya Arulpragasam into this voluptuous pose for the latest Marc Jacobs campaign.

That’s M.I.A., for the non-Pitchfork-educated. She’s been climbing the charts, soundtracking movie trailers, and getting big-upped as this year’s future of rap (according to Nas, the future of rap circa 1992). Add in a little subcontinental glamour and she should be the perfect spokesmodel, right? Well, almost»

Today, PSFK points us to another web gem. This time it’s a post about pre-experience design. That’s (apparently) what brainy ad folk call your expectation of the product, built up by the various things you’ve heard about it. The shining example is the ubiquitous iPhone ads that made everyone want to be able to turn their phone sideways and “pinch” to zoom. Creating the experience starts before anyone buys an iPhone, the argument goes. If you really want to enjoy that wine, he suggests, you should start by buying an expensive glass.

What all this has to do with style»

Apparently Mrs. Bruni’s marriage—and less-than-savory photographic past—hasn’t dimmed her prospects as a model. Apparently the UK supermarket chain ASDA has dumped their current spokesperson in the hopes of landing the French First Lady. Maybe they’re after a break on their export taxes.

More on Ms. Bruni’s future endorsement gigs»

Marc Jacobs’ ads have been eye-catching since the start, and we’re starting to get curious about the man behind the lens. For the curious, his name is Juergen Teller, seen in the picture above discussing aesthetics with the incomparable Charlotte Rampling.

More on Mr. Teller»

The same lingerie line that brought you Kate Moss’ magnum opus has come back with another provocative ad concept: the interactive peep show.

Agent Provocateur’s “Peep in Paris” is the game in question. Sadly, it’s all drawings, but they still manage to fit in some pretty exciting material. The game itself is essentially Strip Simon, with windows in place of colored lights. You do your best to copy the order the windows opened, and the Provocateurs do their best to reward you when you get it right.

Luckily we’ve always had a good memory for those things»

You don’t often hear the “core values” and “Keith Richards” in the same sentence. But we’re always open to new ideas.

Fresh off their Gorbachev campaign, Louis Vuitton has decided to side with another crumbling icon for their “core values” campaign. Other than embodying a kind of boho shabby-chic, we doubt anyone would have chosen Richards as a style icon, but Vuitton sees him more as a lifestyle icon. This pic, photographed by the legendary Annie Liebowitz, captures what seems like a fairly typical moment in Keef’s existence: he is killing time in an anonymous luxury suite, with objects of luxury scattered carelessly around him. And, naturally, the closest object is his Louis Vuitton guitar case, which doubles as an impromptu tea tray.

More on Keef and Louis»

Like ideas, brands can come from anywhere. All you need is an advertising budget, a storefront and a dream.

It turns out JC Penney has all three. They’re starting up their largest product line ever, American Living, with an ad push unlike anything a department store brand has ever seen.

The line is designed by Ralph Lauren, but the ads are the real show»

In the midst of rebranding, The Gap has launched The Sound of Color to help the kids really get to know those colors. Apparently red sounds like electro-pop and green sounds like Swizz Beats, who, fittingly enough, sounds like money.

It can’t help but seem familiar, but this ad (or microsite, if you prefer) takes a different tack than the old Salvation Army color scheme. Instead of trying to help the Gap’s brand—although they’re doing a little of that too—they’re trying to brand the colors. (“Hey, this sweatshirt’s green! I’ve heard about green!”)

It’s an interesting idea, but it’s wrong for a couple reasons»

Sex, drugs, rock & roll—they aren’t exactly hallmarks of mature sophistication, or at least not yet. But there’s no act so wild it can’t be cleaned up by a few well-placed changes. Case in point, Rock Ambassador/Designer John Varvatos’ Spring ‘08 Converse by John Varvatos ad campaign.

It seems that Danny Clinch, the man who managed to make even Alice Cooper look dapper, has handed over the lens to hipstographer Ryan McGinley in the Get Chucked campaign. We’d gladly spend the day browsing McGinley’s portfolio of gloriously happy nudes engaging in normal daily activities (yes, even communal bathing), so we’re excited about the direction he’ll take the ads, especially since they’ll actually revolve around clothing.

Everyone loves a challenge.

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