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| Image: Lovely Package |
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| "The Bushwick Castle" - Brooklyn, NY. Image: Scouting NY and Article: New York Times |
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| Discovered during a walk through Carroll Gardens, BK. Solid brick construction with hardwood detailing. I was in awe of the iron girder over the doors. The perfect rugged/refined house. |
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| Same house - top floor window ornamentation. |
For all of our progress in science, technology, medicine and engineering, I look at the arts and craftsmanship and wonder... are we really any better off? Will there be another who can paint like Michaelangelo, write like Shakespeare? Sing like Sinatra or dance like Astaire? Design like St. Laurent or dress like Agnelli? It's said that all art comes from other art - but perhaps there is a law of diminishing returns. The talent of today seems to lack the potential to reach iconic status. The sheer volume and clutter of "contributions" make most creative endeavors nothing more than trends - quickly passing and easily forgotten. Because of this we always want what came before us... a constant yearning for the past... for the tried and true, the tested and timeless.
When it comes to art and design, regardless of the year, vintage is always "in". It seems that no matter how hard the current crop tries, our predecessors have always done better. As I perused the interwebs earlier in the week, I discovered this photo of vintage beer cans on Lovely Package and it serves to prove my point. I was immediately captivated by the image, like a 13 year-old to a centerfold. The cans held such a clean design, devoid of eye-sore metallic swirls and comic iconography - one with no branding at all, only LITE BEER. Their stark shapes and muted attempts for my attention only make me covet them more. My favorite of the group features a derby! Can you image the jersey-clad, sneaker-footed men of today drinking a beer with a derby on it? Updated to current times, the lager might be called "Gangsta Brim" with an uncreased New Era ballcap as the logo... gold foil sticker and all.
Perhaps my affinity for these cans reinforce Draper's ideas in my previous post. During the Kodak Carousel pitch he states that creating nostalgia can be paramount in advertising... finding that sentimental bond that ties us to an object. I don't just look at these cans and see simple throw-away items, rather I see my grandfathers and great-grandfathers with their buddies sharing "a cold one" after a long day on the docks or at the office. The designs themselves carry with them a link to people I never really knew.
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| Image: Copyranter (one of my favorite blogs) Speaking of good design, vintage advertising can be spot on ...well maybe not the copy. |
As the vintage craze of today continues to flourish and uniquely American classic work wares are in fashion (see Woolrich, Red Wing and Levi's), how exciting would it be to see a resurgence in clean design across the board... starting with beer cans? I would fully embrace a throwback to a square cut can, and happily hang the triangle-carving opener from my fridge. Ad men and designers continually try to dazzle us with color and shape when Occam's razor should still be the golden rule.
I wonder what future generations will look back on and envy during this time - things that I stare at every day that hold no real stylistic value at present? Crocs? The Snuggie? Ed Hardy? Bluetooth headsets? I can only hope that the future spawns smarter, more style-minded humans.
Bottom line: these cans would offer the perfect accessory to any stylish gent in a bar. Rugged in shape, refined in design.
Asking for a Miller Lite bottle just got a little more depressing.
More beer can pics: here, here, here and here
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