Every so often a project comes along where everything aligns.
Ian Bird, the founder and CEO of one of the largest Luxury Product Emporiums in Brazil called me about a vision he had about creating a brand that expressed the pure optimism and embodiment of the spirit of joy he found living in Brazil.
Ian felt that the luxury goods category had become too stuffy, took itself too seriously – he wanted to create something that captured a Spirit that he felt in the youth in his country. He challenged me to find a way to express that spirit – which culminated in one of the most satisfying collaborations of my career.
Ian and I have known each other for almost thirty years – we worked together while I was an animation assistant to Pat Gavin. Ian’s skill as a 3D animator was legendary, he was the visionary behind 1993 Pet Shop Boys Liberation Video and he relished in pushing to find new ways of working, new ways of thinking and better ways of expressing ideas.
Ian already had sketched a mark which he liked, the only restriction he gave me was that any evolution of the mark should remain some kind of Bird.
I wondered if it were possible to create a Bird like image from the initials of the business. A horizontal EB logo which is more refined and closer to Luxury Products, a vertical logo that expresses joy. This created a language that played with the tropes of Luxury, avoided black, dabbled in color, made fun of itself – became messy.
When we started to think about packaging for an own Brand fragrance it seemed obvious to use the dimension of the mark to form a triangular scent bottle evoking a heart and subtly a bird – but when Ian supported creating an egg to house the Scent bottle I knew we on to something special. Irony, playfulness, spirited and witty. The best part is that the shape of scent bottle natural collects the last remaining drops in the narrow bottom of the ampule. No more angling your perfume to get the last drops out.
Ian then challenged me to write a launch story – a story that could connect the Brand back to the land he loved, and to the origin of the Brazilian people. I was inspired by the Cave Paintings at Diamantina Morro do Chapéu, Brazil. One, of a bird, oozed spirit. I was inspired to write a fable that talked about a spirit so strong that it created time itself.
The story, The Bird Who Created Time is being published by Espirito Bird – acting as both a origin story and a celebration of Brazilian Culture and the Spirit and joy that drives the people or Brazil forward.
Ian gave me a blank canvas, with little restriction. His passion and belief in the creative spirit and his care and attention for doing things differently pulled work out of me that I didn’t know I could create. The kind of work that leaves the cerebral ego behind and surrenders to the child-like pleasure of pure joy.
Team
Ian Bird – Collaborator
Marc Shillum – Writing and Design
Greg Delves – Comp Imagery