Sunday, May 31, 2009

nooka look book for 2009-2010 preview



like all venerable brands, nooka produces a new look book each year. this exercise is always takes longer than scheduled and usually runs over-budget, but the results help add new visual vocabulary to the marketing materials [in our case, we use the images on the web site and print materials]

last year [the images on nooka.com as of this writing] we used a studio comprised of students still at carnegie mellon called the supervisory. they have since graduated and moved their studio to nyc and we have contracted with them for this years as well!

(though not necessarily apparent in the finished images) conceptually, we pushed a sci-fi inspired angle for 2008 with a nod to the aesthetics of both westworld and blade runner by treating the models as androids. with the new look book and moreover with messaging for the brand, i want to focus on the concept of universal language as this is a common theme in what motivates me as a designer. this line of thought brought me to contemplate the concept and how to explore it more...math is a universal language, as is music. what movie told this story better than 1977's close encounters of the third kind? and this became our conceptual jumping off point for the art direction of the 2009 photo shoot.

it is from that point the ball was in the supervisory's court to cast and direct the photography to create the images previewed here. the hair and make-up in many of the images is a bit 1970s, but then again, that was the decade that best presented the look of the future in its sci-fi and fashion (both things that inspired my aesthetic approach for nooka).

we will preview the new look book at our pop-up shop at den in the east village of nyc opening july 9th. more on that in a later post. this is where we will launch our belts, wallets and our something else that's very exciting!

more about the supervisory here.

nooka is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Nooka is an official sponsor of The Juan Maclean US Tour happening now!

Friday, May 29, 2009

juan mclean on tour

some pics from the boston and atlanta gigs of the juan mclean last week. more info on the link at the bottom of this entry to find out when the band and the robot nookanooka will be in your town!




nooka is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Nooka is an official sponsor of The Juan Maclean US Tour happening now!

Thursday, May 28, 2009

nooka creative x-change: nid and sancy

i recently got to catch up with one of my favorite european electro outfits, nid and sancy. it was over 2 years ago when i stumbled upon a cd of their music on the desk of someone in my tokyo office and have been eagerly awaiting new music from them since! their new album yeah yeah yes is available on itunes now.


bio: HI. We are Nid And Sancy.We come from Ghent, Belgium, Europe. Our music is mostly electronic but we also use live instruments to create a tension and inject some sweat, rawness and life into our music.We have always been fond of strange sounds. We like energetic performances. We like punk in its truest DIY form. So far we recorded 3 albums ( plus one unofficial one) under this name and played countless shows throughout Europe, Asia and the USA.

Q1 i find that most creatives confuse "motivation" and "inspiration", and certainly there are times when they are the same. do you as artists see them one and the same or as different drivers for your creative process? No ,they are different to us. motivation encompasses a bigger thing in our view. Motivation is the bookshelf. Inspiration are the books. Its the drive that makes us do what we do without having to think about it.. We have worked together closely for years and we have never questioned why are musicians. Its a natural given. Like breathing. Inspiration is a different thing. its how you perceive the outside world into your work and alter it to your own perfection.

Q2 nid and sancy is obviously a play on "sid and nancy", the tragic couple of the sex pistols. can you tell me a bit about how you came about the name? The name came about because of 2 coincidental occurrences that had nothing to do with eachother.

In 2000 we had a project called "Galacticamendum" and we were invited to play our first two shows ever in a small electronica tent at a big and famous festival over here. At that time most of the other acts were noodlin on their laptops live and their live shows looked more like they were checking email then anything else. We didnt even have a laptop. Just some old boxes and vintage gear. We were much like a punk band, only with old electronic instruments. Afterwords the journalists described us as the Sid And Nancy of electronic music.

A bit later a theatre company invited us to NY to record sounds of the city and turn them into a soundtrack for their theatre play. Unknowigly, they had booked us in the Chelsea hotel , where Sid vicious reportedly murdered his girlfriend. Soon after we came back we started doing some bootleg mash ups and needed a different name then the unpronounceable "Galacticamendum"...and thats how we got to Nid And Sancy.

Q3 i know that visual presentation and design is very important to you. how to you feel now that itunes is the main market for your music as a design issue? Thats probably the biggest downside of itunes. The artwork doesnt come off the way it should. But we already felt that way with cd. So we're definately loosing ground here. We've also come to notice that kids dont seem to be hung up on artwork as before. They're happy just downloading a file. At the moment we are thinking how to incorporate our artwork in other ways into our work. As all the parameters are changing, we have to. The good thing is with new parameters, new opportunities arise. We are looking into an iphone app now and we will find ways of incorporating our artwork in there. Cds are almost gone...there are a lot of people playing music on their iphones. Even ipods will be a thing of the past sooner then we think. So its a situation that changes fast and will keep on changing fast.

Q4 what's next for you guys? coming to the states? Yeah. We are planning to come to the states. We just returned from playing Steve Aokis club in Los Angeles and the SXSW festival in Texas. We already played NY as well and are planning a few new dates. We have a small but dedicated following in the US that seems to keep growing and we love coming there. So we will definately put more energy towards it. Our sales have grown the most in the US over the last 2 years. We feel people are very perceptive to what we do and that has given us a very good vibe to work more on that "market".

Q5 what does nooka mean to you? Well.We never been big fans of watches but when we saw the Nookas on the website...Some models immediately appealed to us because they simply put the idea of a watch in a new perspective.

I am wearing the ZON right now and its just a pleasure to wear and look at. Also the idea of reading the time from the blocks. Its a fresh take on how you look at time by just displaying it in a different way.

Nookas are what we call classic futurism. They present something in a new way. When you come in contact with the nookas, all other watches look a bit bland and boring. And they are not gadget-like in any kind of way giving you all these whistles and bells you dont need. In that respect they are classic where they need to be and futuristic where they need to be. Great pieces!



nooka is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Nooka is an official sponsor of The Juan Maclean US Tour happening now!

Friday, May 22, 2009

nooka in china and hong kong


china and hong kong are known to be difficult regions for smaller brands – and establishing a brand takes more time. simply put [and of course i am over generalizing], the chinese consumer will not buy an item at full price unless it is a well-established major fashion brand. so though we have had consistent great press in hong kong [thank you allan!], we had some difficulty creating the same retail experiences we enjoy in tokyo and new york [for example].

well, this is now going to change as i am super excited to announce our exclusive retail partner for hong kong: LANE CRAWFORD! i love their stores – where else can you sit down and have an espresso brought to you while your goods are being wrapped? they are experts at retail experience and a perfect enthusiastic partner for not just hong kong, but shanghai and beijing as well!

so look for nooka in the watch departments of lane crawford in hong kong, shanghai and beijing. you can also find nooka at glossy shanghai and the mori art center.

lane crawford website is here.

not in hong kong, shanghai or beijing? nooka is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Nooka is an official sponsor of The Juan Maclean US Tour happening now!

nooka on style.com


vogue and style.com are showing nooka some love again this week! have a look! fa fa fa fa fashion!

nooka available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

nooka press: vice



latest 2 months in vice magazine! kinda hard to tell, but trust me, they are nookas on the naked ladies.

don't forget about the vice/DF/nooka sponsored juan mclean tour, tonight in BOSTON. info here.

nooka available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

nooka lab: semi precious weapons



first, a huge shout-out to todd owyoung, the handsome and multi-talented designer/photographer/blogger/networker based in st. louis! he is always hooking nooka up with cool new music acts just by wearing his nooka watch all the time. check out his web site here.

thanks to todd's intro, i got to hang out a bit with the sexy justin tranter of the NYC based glam-rock band, semi-precious weapons and his friend jimmy knehans, über handsome model/actor. justin is someone to watch, upcoming reality show, his own line of jewelry at barneys, and album produced by tony visconti!!! TONY VISCONTI yo! to quote one of his songs, [justin] has been magnetic since he was a baby. learn more about justin and all of his projects here. and here is a direct link to buy the album on itunes. really energized my day so i wanted to share.

the zircs shown in these fotos are available here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

subcarism tokyo at stitch daikanyama


last month i posted some process photos for a piece i did for a group show in tokyo that opens at stitch in daikanyama on the 29th of this month [may].the show is titled SUBCARISM TOKYO and runs through june 14th. the opening i on the 29th from 6-9pm. subcarism = subculture (サブカルチャーsabucaruchah in japanese) + -ism

the goal of the show is to show the global influence of japanese subculture as seen through the international expressions of the urban vinyl scene and features an impressive line-up of talent. i am truly flattered to be included in such a line-up! the show will feature customized versions of each artist/company's signature vinyl and mine will of course be the nookanooka! the foto here is the 3 pieces i customized for the exhibition.

more info on the show here but it is in japanese only.

PARTICIPATING ARTISTS

ART DENKA http://www.artdenka.com
BEN MORI http://www.benmori.com
BLObPUS http://www.blobpus.jp
Brian Flynn http://super7store.com
Buff Monster http://www.buffmonster.com
Bwana Spoons http://grasshutcorp.com/blog
CHINO http://www.bus-works.com
David Horvath http://www.uglydolls.com
DEVILROBOTS http://www.dvrb.jp/w/
gargamel http://www.gargamel.jp
HARIKEN http://hariken.net
Itokin Park http://www.itokin-park.com
Joe Ledbetter http://www.joeledbetter.com
JUN WATANABE http://www.junwatanabe.jp/
KAIJIN http://www.kaijin-toy.jp
Katope
Koji Harmon www.cometdebris.com
Le Merde http://www.lemerde.com
MAD BARBARIANS
Martin Ontiveros http://www.martinhead.com
Matthew Waldman http://www.nooka.com
MOGraphixx http://www.mographixx.com
sunguts http://www.sunguts.com
T9G http://www.muse-um.com
Takeshi Togo/hgs http://www.thiyea.com
The Wonderful! design works http://w-d-w.com
Tiger Jet Michiko http://blog.livedoor.jp/vinyl_junkies/
Tim Biskup http://www.timbiskup.com
UNIVERSAL POOYAN http://www.universalpooyan.jp
Yukinori Dehara http://www.dehara.com


nooka is available in many shops in japan including stitch in daikanyama as well as here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

nooka X supreme being

we met the guys behind supreme being at a trade show in barcelona 4 years ago! we've kept in touch ever since, and i am excited to announce a collab! i have watched them grow from t-shirts to a full-fledged fashion company – congratulations guys!

from the official press release: Supremebeing first began as a small, hand-printed graphic t-shirt venture in the UK, and today has grown to a full street-wear clothing line for both men and women. The fully-formed line features everything from clothing to trainers and accessories, along with their staple t-shirt collection. Many of the t-shirts are still printed by hand, keeping the personal touch of the line alive and well. Their ethos, ‘Created First Amongst Equals,’ encourages consumers to not simply wear their clothing for the brand name, but because they love the clothes. This attitude is expressed in the brand’s own designs and is also apparent in the collaborative design with Nooka.

supreme being website here.

nooka featured is available for pre-order here and will ship end-may. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

studio visit: charlie villanueva



let's talk about how to make oneself look very short: stand next to the milwaukee bucks charlie villanueva! he is the sweetest guy and a native of queens NYC [just like me]. thanks to stephanie solomon, my well-connected friend from los angeles for stopping by the nooka lab with him.

nooka featured is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

studio visit: jimmy jane / ethan imboden


i am falling behind with my blogging and i will blame the ICFF for being in town this past weekend [up til today].

on friday, san francisco based ethan imboden came by the nooka lab to talk shop [design entrepreneur stuff] which was really great as i never meet enough people doing ventures similar to mine. ethan is the creative mind behind jimmy jane [website here], a company repositioning sex play products. so though the line couldn't be any more different from nooka, their approach to marketing and placement is similar and we always have a lot to talk about. i also love their tagline: where naughty is nice, sexy is smart, and the pleasure's in the details.

he walked away with a mirror finished zen-h nooka watch which i think matches his style pretty well.

nooka featured is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

nooka sightings: the method man

whether you know him old-school from the wu-tang clan or new-school from the wire on hbo, method man is the shizzle.

seen here in a crooks and castle T and a spring zub zoo 38 in fire engine red.

big shout-out to LaToya McLean for taking the time to send us the photos!


nooka featured is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Nooka is an official sponsor of The Juan Maclean US Tour this Spring.

Monday, May 11, 2009

nooka X spongebob squarepants


i usually wait to blog about stuff until it's actually in stores or at least a few weeks prior to that date, but as this news is already out on the PR wires, i feel it should also be on my blog.

it's no secret that personally, i'm a huge fan of spongebob [i like square butts and just can't lie...what a great tv commercial!], but was a bit reticent at first to agreeing to a collab when we were approached by nickelodeon. my fears about the collaboration were quickly dispelled when i was shown the great stuff BAPE produced last year and were told that we would have liberty to manipulate and create our own design vocabulary for the project.

i must say, the creative teams at nickelodeon are amazing! they are enthusiastic about their properties and about working with us.

2009 is the 10th anniversary of spongebob squarepants and we are more than stoked to be a part of the year long celebration. our pieces will be available in-stores this summer but look for pre-order status in june on our online store. i'll blog about it again when closer to the drop-date. in the meantime, read this cool article in, of all places, marketwatch.com! and also on hypebeast!

nooka featured is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Nooka is an official sponsor of The Juan Maclean US Tour this Spring.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

nooka x juan maclean repost




i'm posting this info again with new fotos from the finished DFA records/mike vadino customized nookanooka. learn more here where you can get tour dates as well.

mike vadino, the graphic design mind behind dfa records has customized a nookanooka as part of the juan maclean tour nooka is proud to be an official sponsor. here is the official copy from the ad that will run in the next issue of vice magazine:

The Juan Maclean Nooka Robot is the not-too-distant relative of Nooka’s official mascot, the NookaNooka™ Born from the sci-fi influences and music of DFA Records’ The Juan Maclean, and Nooka’s decidedly different approach to design, our little robot friend has already taken a liking to this planet. In fact, he’ll be hitting the road this month and next with The Juan Maclean and making appearances at select shows.

we will have a website with all the tour dates up by the end of the week where you can also view a preview video of how the mike vadino nookanooka was made! you can buy the juan maclean release, the future will come on itunes.

nooka featured is available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Nooka is an official sponsor of The Juan Maclean US Tour this Spring.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

noo nookanooka video

it's so nice to see other creatives take on the work one produces, and what better way than with video. here is an image video for nooka featuring the nookanooka as brand ambassador. let me know what you think.



direct link to the video on our website is here. the studio who produced the vid is release the hounds, their website is here.

Executive Creative Director: Matthew Waldman
Creative Director: Andrew Hamilton
Agency: Release the Hounds
Creative Direction: John Mills, Russ Gautier
3D Animation: Russ Gautier
Story by: John Mills, Russ Gautier
Agency Producer: Holly Flaisher
Music: "Sleepyhead" Passion Pit



nookas and nookanookas are available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.

Monday, May 4, 2009

boys boys and random stuff


ok...i've noticed a more than seasonal drop in web traffic to both my blog and nooka.com which i hope means people are busy out of doors making money. i will take today as an opportunity to update stuff that ends up on twitter and not here.

a few weeks ago jeff sheldon of ugmonk stopped by the studio wearing his nooka watch. jeff works in a studio that specializes in extreme sports marketing, but his own line of t-shirts is his side project i was aware of. i wear his "and then i woke up" t-shirt as often as i wash it! get yours here.

last week, photographer and media impresario derrick gomez stopped by the studio to chat and catch up. i love that he refers to my office as the nooka lab and i think i'll start doing the same. see his site, photography, and blog here.

not sure if i blogged this before, but i was nominated and accepted to be a fellow of the royal society for the arts in the UK. this means i now can put the letters F.R.S.A after my name. My friend darren in london has been busy collecting letters for his name and he's helping me do the same! the rsa is an amzing organization and they have a well developed design outreach program. check out their design and society blog here.

other non related bloggo-bit: saw 2 films at the tribeca film fest: the girlfriend experience and 7 minutes in heaven. both excellent but i can't see them making their way into theaters, at least in the US. will be great on HBO though. it was great being a VIP for a day!

the nookas seen on the handsome boys in the foto above [left to right, jeff, me (don't you love my new muji eyewear and t-shirt designed by jeff?), and derrick] are available at fine stores and here. join nooka and love nooka on facebook and nookaNOW on twitter.