Winnipeg, Canada
The statistics are in… this year’s Movember event is an unprecedented success, raising a total of $113,931,103 for the cause. The lads at Circle are chuffed to have contributed to the effort through their sacrificial facial dedication—Canada was the world’s single largest contributor this year, with a whopping $39.8 million!
Thanks to those who contributed to the cause (during November each year, Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces… raising vital funds and awareness for men’s health, specifically prostate cancer). See full Movember stats here.
The handsome swashbuckler above is Circle’s Adrian Shum.
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Excerpt from the Movember website…
During November each year, Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces, in Canada and around the world. With their “Mo’s,” these men raise vital funds and awareness for men’s health, specifically prostate cancer.
On Movember 1st, guys register at Movember.com with a clean-shaven face. For the rest of the month, these selfless and generous men, known as Mo Bros, groom, trim and wax their way into the annals of fine moustachery. Supported by the women in their lives, Mo Sistas, Movember Mo Bros raise funds by seeking out sponsorship for their Mo-growing efforts. Mo Bros effectively become walking, talking billboards for the 30 days of November. Through their actions and words, they raise awareness by prompting private and public conversation around the often ignored issue of men’s health.
At the end of the month, Mo Bros and Mo Sistas celebrate their gallantry and valor by either throwing their own Movember party or attending one of the infamous Gala Partés held around the world by Movember, for Movember.
Several members of the Circle team are participating in this year’s movement, and we’d be delighted if you chose to make a donation to the cause… donate to Rob’s efforts here, and Adrian’s efforts here. Cheers!
Taipei, Taiwan
Robert L. Peters has just returned from the 2011 IDA World Design Congress in Taipei (IDA = the International Design Alliance, comprised of Icograda, Icsid, and IFI) and the 24th General Assembly of Icograda, the International Council of Communication Design.
The sold-out benchmark congress event drew together over 3000 delegates from around the globe, and was accompanied by a successful Design Expo (which enjoyed over 1 million visitors); scores of parallel exhibitions, conferences, and seminars further illuminated the city of Taipei’s position during this time as the centre of attention in the world of design.
The 2011 IDA Congress lived up to its billing as a unique gathering of thought leadership exploring the intersection between design and five key sectors of global relevance: economic development, the Internet, biotechnology, urbanism, and international migration. As such, it brought together designers with non-design stakeholders to promote the value of design and explore design-led approaches as an enabler of innovation. “The Congress theme—Design at the Edges—highlights the edges between design practice and other fields having a stake in design; the blurring of the boundaries between the design disciplines, as well as their unique attributes; and ‘cutting edge’ work and ideas—thinking that pushes the boundaries of all disciplines.”
Over the past two years, Peters has had the pleasure of acting as an adviser to the Taiwanese hosts/organizers, and he was also pleased to have the opportunity of presenting a keynote lecture in the ‘Economic Development’ stream. He’s learned a lot about Taiwan (this was his 7th trip there), in no small part through the process of researching and writing a feature article that appears in the current issue of Communication Arts magazine (November/December 2011 issue, download a 1.7MB PDF here).
A huge ‘thank-you’ goes out to the local hosts in Taipei; the Taiwan Design Centre, as well as to the visionary Taiwanese ministries whose mission for sustainable economic development has placed Design at the center of their strategic thinking for the future. Thanks also to the many Taiwanese designers who contributed their works and viewpoints to Peters’ CA article… 謝謝!
Montréal, Quebec
We’re delighted to announce that the latest set of commemorative stamps in the Canadian Recording Artists series that we have designed for Canada Post is launching today. This series of stamps features black & white portraits of the artists, supported by typographic tapestries comprised of song titles. The iconic Canadian artists featured in this series are Bruce Cockburn, Robbie Robertson, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, and chanteuse Ginette Reno. CD-shaped booklets of 8 die-cut, pressure-sensitive stamps (along with envelope seals and information about each artist) are available in four styles, with individualized covers for each of the four artists. Also available are souvenir sheets, postcards, and an Official First Day Cover (OFDC, popular with philatelists).
Circle has been designing the Canadian Recording Artists stamp series since 2007; the first series featured Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell, Anne Murray, and Paul Anka; series two featured Édith Butler, Stompin’ Tom (Connors), Bryan Adams, and Robert Charlebois.
These limited edition stamps are available through post offices across the country as of today, 30 June 2011. They can be ordered online by following the links at Canada Post’s website www.canadapost.ca, or by calling toll-free: 1-800-565-4362 (Canada and the United States), or 902-863-6550 (from other countries).
For more information about the stamps’ design, please contact Robert L. Peters at Circle in Winnipeg: +1 204 943 3693.
Images: the round souvenir sheet on gummed stock; the four “postage paid” postcards, each featuring an enlarged stamp/portrait; and the Officidal First Day Cover (OFDC) with date-of-issue cancellations.
Ottawa, Canada
(from a piece in CBC’s Arts & Entertainment)
…Canada Post has announced that a new stamp featuring the celebrated singer-songwriter will be issued on June 30 as part of the third instalment of its Canadian Recording Artists series. His stamp will join the previously announced stamps of Kate and Anna McGarrigle, Robbie Robertson and Ginette Reno.
“This is very exciting,” the Ottawa-born Cockburn said in a statement. The stamp’s design—a black and white image of him against a red background featuring titles of his hit songs—is “beautiful,” he added. Over the years, the folk-rock singer and activist has won multiple awards for his music, which includes hits such as The Coldest Night of the Year and If I Had a Rocket Launcher. His original songs have inspired covers by a wide range of artists—from Jimmy Buffett to the Barenaked Ladies.
He released his 31st album, Small Source of Comfort, in March and is currently touring the U.S. Cockburn, who is also an officer of the Order of Canada and member of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, is slated to publish his memoir in April 2012.
We were happy to have the honor of designing this latest set of stamps featuring Canadian singer/songwriters (our third such series)… look for more news and image releases in the weeks to come.
Winnipeg, Canada
We’re looking forward to the gala black-tie dinner fundraiser tonight at the Hotel Fort Garry on Broadway—the special honoree is Manitoba’s former Premier, and now Canada’s Ambassador to the USA, Gary Doer. This event is the 28th annual for the Concordia Foundation, a charitable organization dedicated to preserving the high quality of health and wellness services provided by Concordia (Concordia Hospital, Concordia Place, Concordia Hip & Knee Institute, Concordia Wellness Projects and Concordia Village).
Circle is a sponsor of the gala event, and we also designed the related graphics and collateral materials. Find out more about the Concordia Foundation at the recently-launched website we designed, here.
Postscript (6 June 2011): The fundraiser proved to be a resounding success, with over $100,000 raised. View a summary by the Winnipeg Free Press here.
Winnipeg, Canada
No big celebrations or festivities, but we’re reflective and thoughtful today as we mark 35 years since our formation as a design consultancy. Heartfelt thanks go out to all those who have contributed to our history to date… colleagues, clients, vendors, friends, and family members!
Cheers!
Rome, Italy
Congratulations(!) to our longstanding client The North West Company (NWC) on the successful run by their Team Diabetes group last week—73 of 77 runners from NWC completed the 2011 Maratona di Roma, raising over $500,000 in donations to fight the debilitating disease (a serious condition that affects more than 3 million Canadians, with those of Aboriginal descent being three to five times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes).
Another client of ours, MKO Grand Chief David Harper (of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Inc., the non-profit, political advocacy organization that represents 30 First Nation communities in Manitoba’s North) ran the Rome Marathon alongside the NWC team. Chief Harper later had the opportunity to meet Pope Benedict at St. Peter’s Square, where he raised the issue of the urgent need for clean, running water in northern First Nations. The Pope indicated that there was indeed a need for greater advocacy on this issue, and promised to issue an urgent call for same. Chief Harper also extended an invitation to the Pope to visit Manitoba’s northern First Nation communities when the Pope makes his first visit to Canada.
Images: Edward Kennedy, President and CEO of NWC, after the finish; David Lui, NWC’s Marketing Director (who ran for his diabetic dad, Andrew Lui); Grand Chief David Harper with Pope Benedict (photo from the Winnipeg Free Press).
Winnipeg, Canada
Two months ago we announced the launch of The Canadian Gallery, a collection of exquisite outdoor and nature photographs by our long-time friend and client, Mike Grandmaison. (The Canadian Gallery offers images of our great land specifically selected for their appeal to collectors—as fine art pieces, for corporate decor, and for use as corporate gifts).
The Canadian Gallery’s physical exhibit space opened with an evening reception today at Photo Central, 2nd Floor, 499 Notre Dame Avenue in Winnipeg. Check out some of the imagery on display here.
Above: a few select images from The Canadian Gallery (all photographs ©2011 Mike Grandmaison). Below: designer Adrian Shum caught on “auto-time-lapse” early in the evening.
