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High Five in association withThe Immortal Awards
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High Five: Challenging Your Inner Artist

12/04/2023
Marketing & PR
London, UK
395
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J. Patrick McElroy, rep / partner at Champion, reflects on some of the great artists who have worked across our industry

I recently watched Whit Stillman’s 'The Last Days of Disco' with my sister, which contains a running joke in which a club refuses entry to people who work in advertising. It brought to mind a certain amount of embarrassment that gets exhibited by my peers in the industry when talking about our work. I disagree with the sentiment that there is something garish about working in advertising, something less creative about it than other fields. When I’m asked if I like what I do for a living, I answer yes, mostly thinking of how many creative people I get to work with - artists, craftspeople, creative thinkers. The advertising medium is openly and honestly engaged in capitalism, and because of this, the artists involved can afford to explore and continue to create new art. This High Five is not about the effectiveness of these ads for brands, but a reminder of the long tradition of great artists who worked within our industry, that encourages creatives not to compartmentalise their talents, and challenges us all to keep the bar high...



Dole Pineapple Company x Georgia O’Keeffe



O’Keeffe was commissioned by the Dole Pineapple Company to produce two paintings as part of an advertising campaign for the company. Her husband, photographer Alfred Stieglitz, voiced his reservations over the proposition, because he did not believe that serious artists should do commercial work. However, O'Keeffe's trip had a lasting impact on her work. She stated that her trip to Hawaii had been one of the most important experiences of her life and had influenced her artistic style in years that followed. She created at least 20 works, including images of flowers, fruits and landscapes. These paintings have been shown as recently as 2018 at the New York Botanical Garden. 



Alka Seltzer x Salvador Dali


In his autobiography, 'The Secret Life of Salvador Dali', Dali wrote: "I accept all commercial work offered me... the sole justification for my existence is my painting and my art. But the commerce is the most beautiful sign of confidence that one can give to an artist." Dali's approach to commercial work was controversial among his fellow Surrealists, who saw it as compromising his artistic integrity. However, Dali believed that commercial work allowed him to experiment with new techniques and ideas that he could later incorporate into his fine art.



Absolut x Keith Haring



Haring enjoyed creating commercial work for many reasons. It provided him with a steady source of income, and he also saw it as a way of engaging with popular culture. Haring was able to communicate his ideas about art, politics and society to a wider audience, and through his commercial work, he was able to raise awareness about issues such as AIDS.



Georgia Coffee x David Lynch


No-one would dare call David Lynch a sell-out. In a 2014 interview with The Independent, Lynch said: "I love advertising, I love the world of advertising, because it's so creative. It's like a strange, abstract world that has its own rules and its own kind of weirdness." However, he is discerning about who he creates ads for, stating in a 2016 interview with the Daily Beast: "I've had some opportunities [for commercials] where I just couldn't do it because the thing they were selling was not something I wanted to be involved with. But when it's something that I feel good about, then I'm happy to do it."



Braniff Airlines x Alexander Calder



Image credit: Braniff Airways, Incorporated

Alexander Calder’s collaboration with Braniff Airlines in 1973 is considered one of the most successful examples of an artist working in the commercial world. He was commissioned to design a fleet for the airline, as well as create artworks for their terminal spaces. Today, you can find Calder’s work for Braniff at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. 

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