October 30, 2006
Typophiles celebrate FontFont’s 15-year anniversary
TORONTO—The Canadian debut of FiFFteen, a German exhibit of the FontFont type library, will begin tomorrow night as part of the 2006 DesignThinkers conference.

Taking place at the Resistor Gallery, the exhibit celebrates the 15-year history of FontFont's library, which has grown to include over 3,500 fonts.

The exhibit will also feature FUSE, a publication on experimental typography that ran between 1991 and 2000 and was edited by Neville Brody.

FiFFteen will be on display from Nov. 1 to Nov. 10. Contact: www.rgdontario.com.

October 27, 2006
CLARIFICATION
In our Oct. 18 story “Design firm partners with ad agency,” we stated that John St. Advertising has not acquired AmoebaCorp. While it is true that both parties are calling their new relationship a “joint venture,” the financial terms of the deal remain confidential. The Oct. 18 story has been updated.

October 26, 2006
Alberta interactive marketing company keeps growing
CALGARY—Interactive marketing firm Rare Method has acquired Ground Level Design, a web design and development company also based here.

The Ground Level Design team

Rare Method president Roger Jewett highlighted Ground Level's talent in web development, and its industry connections as motivating factors behind yesterday's acquisition.

"The principals, Paul Hewitt and Vern Hume, are very well known in Calgary,” he says, adding that, “they have some excellent connections in the oil and gas sectors as well as with the government.”

Ground Level is excited about the possibilities that joining Rare Method brings.

“It is a win-win. Rare Method gets a talented group of individuals and a nice client list to help bolster their business and as part of the larger Rare Method we can grow beyond the confines of a smaller company and offer our clients more," says Ground Level partner Paul Hewitt.

Rare Method's employee count has now jumped to more than 85 people, including three in the U.S. Contact: www.raremethod.com

October 24, 2006
New logo, direction for the ACA
TORONTO—Filip Jansky of Method 09 Design in Toronto redesigned the Association of Canadian Advertisers' new logo, which launched last Thursday during the ACA's Fall Event at the Granite Club in Toronto.

Association of Canadian Advertisers' new identity

Along with the logo, the ACA also unveiled a new tagline and website as part of an overall change in its corporate identity. These changes marked the first major reworking of the ACA brand in almost 40 years.

ACA president and CEO Ron Lund said in a released statement the redesign was commissioned after a new vision, focusing on leadership, was articulated for the association.

"We believed that we needed to underpin this position by making our brand-mark bolder, more colourful and active," Lund added.

Jansky's previous works include designs for Fluid Nightclub, Epilepsy Toronto, and Paula Lishman International. Contact: www.method09.com.

October 20, 2006
Toronto looks for help with 2015 World Expo bid
TORONTO—The Toronto 2015 World Expo Corporation is inviting proposals from qualified professionals to help prepare a strategic presentation regarding its bid to host the 2015 World Expo. For more information on its Request for Proposals, visit the Toronto 2015 World Expo website. Deadline for proposal submissions is Nov. 7. Contact: www.tedco.ca/expo/procurement.html.

October 19, 2006
West coast art director talks about Time
VANCOUVER—Art director and editor Rick Staehling will be speaking as part of a free information session at Capilano College on the evening of October 25.

Art director Rick Staehling

Staehling, who is a visual communications instructor at the college, will talk about his experience working at Time Magazine.

An editor for Travel Etc., Staehling is part of one of the three teams currently making submissions for a redesign of Time Magazine.

The Western Magazine Awards honoured Staehling’s 25-year career with a lifetime achievement award in 2005.

The information session is open to the public. Contact: www.capcollege.bc.ca

October 18, 2006
Design firm partners with ad agency
TORONTO—John St. Advertising and Toronto design firm AmoebaCorp are transforming their three-year working relationship into a “joint venture,” the financial details of which remain confidential. This new agreement will see AmoebaCorp principals retain some equity and all managerial and operational control of the design shop.

The union is mutually beneficial. Amoeba’s small team of eight (which includes six designers) can now share resources available to the larger office. “What they offer is huge in terms of support services, strategic staff, technology,” says Richardson. And John St. can enjoy closer proximity to design thinkers.

“We want to bring the designers in at the thinking end, and they will be there though the execution [phase],” said John St. principal Arthur Fleischmann in today's Globe and Mail. “They come at [issues] from a different way. You put them at the table at the beginning, solving the problem, and the answer you’ll get, I guarantee, will be different.”

Amoeba is also excited about the venture. “They’re savvy guys. They understand design and they have for a long time,” says Richardson. Although both firms work on projects for the same clients, the design and advertising work is currently done separately. “The real potential is when we sit down right at the beginning, in building brands with these clients. So we’ll sit in from a design perspective and they’ll sit in from an advertising perspective.” Mutual clients have included Maple Leaf Entertainment, Tetley and Fuji.

The opportunity now to collaborate is an exciting one, he adds. “From a business perspective, with the combined resources of a design firm and an ad agency, we can together take on more diverse projects.” AmoebaCorp will be moving into the same building as John St. next month. Contact: www.amoebacorp.com; www.johnst.com

October 12, 2006
Compass360 constructs new identity for homebuilder
TORONTO — Toronto-based design firm Compass360 unveiled its new identity for Pavillionhome, a developer of contemporary prefabricated homes.

Compass360 designs new logo for home developer

"The simplicity of forms is reflective of the product Pavillionhome builds," said Karl Thomson, creative director at Compass360, in a released statement. "It's application to stationery and promotional material is also very clean, with the tactile feel of letterpressing representing the firm's hands-on, craftsman-like approach."

Additional collateral and a web site for Pavillionhome will be complete by year’s end. Contact: www.compass360.com

October 10, 2006
Wanted: mascot manufacturer
VANCOUVER—The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) is searching for a designer to create the official Games mascot(s). According to VANOC, the mascot will figure prominently in hundreds of communication materials, including advertising, web, publications and merchandise. The call is open to artists worldwide. The deadline for proposals is Nov.1. Contact: www.vancouver2010.com/mascot

“Taxi Vancouver will bring us closer to our western clients and continue the momentum established with our Calgary office,” said Taxi Canada president Rob Guenette in a released statement. Taxi Calgary launched less than a year ago; its clients include Telus and WestJet. The new Vancouver office is scheduled to open in early 2007.

Taxi Toronto was recently ranked eighth most awarded agency in the world by Creativity magazine. It was the only Canadian shop to make the list. Contact: www.taxi.ca.