Comments on: Issac Mizrahi on Metro North

By: Dan Soltzberg

Dan Soltzberg — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 22:03:57 +0000

There's a meta-story here, as well. In his post, Grant highlighted the Paper Monster graffiti detail, riffed a few hypotheses on what it might mean, and then the actual PaperMonster wrote in clarifying that the graffito was one of his/her tags.

So the Mizrahi ad has now become, at least for the several people involved in this interaction, a platform for dialogue and a "place where people are meeting." As with the best viral marketing, the distinctions between the realms of media and "life" have dissolved, and we are left with a multiplicity of forces exerting influence on each other. Advertising in the age of the critically literate consumer and the internet has the opportunity to create this mechanism and the chance to exploit it.

By: irene

irene — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:23:46 +0000

The "stories" on the lizclaiborne site almost undermine the visuals. Really, what possessed them to features profiles that sound so much like background info on a creative brief? It's strange. Like someone at lizclaiborne couldn't quite embrace this "new article of faith" — couldn't quite leave it to the consumer's imagination and intelligence. It may be a minor thing but still.

By: Alain Breillatt

Alain Breillatt — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:37:41 +0000

I was going to say that is the tag of PaperMonster, a stencil artist who does his own brand of storytelling through imagery of women. But it appears he already made himself know above. Still there is an even deeper conversation going on here, Grant. Read this interview to get a full sense of how PM's tag on the Mizrahi ad creates an wonderful mashup for those who see the context.

http://www.formatmag.com/art/paper-monster/

By: Scott Ellington

Scott Ellington — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:50:00 +0000

Practically every person in the image is a designer/critic: Much depends on the definition of the term.
There used to be 7 million stories in The Naked City. Naked/Fashion -- ironic.
There might be that many crops of this photograph, and stories intersecting in it, at grantstome.com.
(That's just my attempt at a cooler name for this blog.)

http://style.lizclaiborne.com/brand/street_cat_walk

http://style.lizclaiborne.com/brand/isaac_tv

Scott

By: Rick Liebling

Rick Liebling — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:32:29 +0000

PaperMonster -

Very cool. I do believe you meant to address your comment to Grant though.

By: PaperMonster

PaperMonster — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 03:26:48 +0000

Hey Rick!!
So I just ran into this site and I realized that you actually wrote about one of my tags!! I am PaperMonster (http://papermonster.wordpress.com) I was wondering if you could do me an amazing favor and send over these images as high resolution images to me so that can write about this as well as your site. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this and my heart is racing right now. Thank you for all of the help and incredible writing on this ad. Very well done. My email is v@papermonster.org
Thanks so much once again.
-PaperMonster

By: Rick Liebling

Rick Liebling — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 02:47:45 +0000

Grant,

Great insight as always. I actually wrote about fashion ads last August from a similar perspective (forgive the self-promotional indulgence):

http://www.rickliebling.com/2008/08/21/fashion-ads-authentic-v-inauthentic-fantasy/

Most high fashion ads have a superficiliaty that destroys the fantasy for me. The NYC kerfuffle over the Calvin Klein wall ad is a great example. The three guys don't look like they have any interest in the girl to me. But this Liz Clairborne ad has a different type of fictionality (that's a word, right?) It's a fictionality that is somehow existing in a real world. Mothers and daughters we get. Friends chatting we get. A guy with a bandana we get.

Regarding the grafitti, my interpretation is that it was there before the ad was shot, and the ad agency, rather than photoshopping it out in post-production, left it in to add a level of authenticity. But certainly we are meant to ponder the meanings as you have.

I particularly love the character with the yellow umbrella. She looks like she just stepped out of a photo from the Sartorialist. I think she perfectly counter-balances Mizrahi: two undecidedly non-traditional model bodies in a model world (look at the rest of the cast). And yet, those two are the most interesting. I think there is another ad or two in this campaign, and they're equally interesting. Thanks again Grant for highlighting this.