good taste_vol 1
One thing I've come to realise is that creativity doesn't happen in a vacuum. The work we create is influenced by everything around us — fashion, film, design, music, conversations, travel, architecture, even a random observation on a Tuesday afternoon. The more curious you are about the world, the more interesting your work becomes.
I have gotten ideas from films, from music, TikTok videos, a story I heard from a friend, a perspective from a stranger… you get the idea.
I feel, to be a great creative director, you must be a walking wall of references. Your ideas must intertwine, cross and bounce off different reference points.
I have known I wanted to do “Good Taste” for over a year. I didn’t decide on a name until two weeks ago when I was moodboarding my shoot for it, so I’ve been collecting for a while now. I can unfortunately only keep a few in each volume so let’s get into the things that stopped my scroll or made me file them under, “this is really cool.”
Nike vs Adidas World Cup Ads
Some of the best marketing and advertising lessons come from these two iconic sportswear giants, Nike and Adidas. I have referenced them so many times in my career, so it’s actually fitting that they both released spectacular ads just in time to make my first volume.
For the upcoming World Cup, these two brands released ads celebrating the World Cup and football culture.
Adidas released an indie-like film starring Timothée Chalamet and football stars, while Nike released a Marvel-like multiverse film starring even more football stars and entertainers such as Travis Scott, Channing Tatum, the Ted Lasso guy, and even Kim K.
While I loved both ads, I think the Nike one made me chuckle, ooh and ahh more while watching it.
Nike has opted to create what it describes as a Nike Football “universe”.
Someone said Adidas was like an A24 film and Nike was Marvel. And I see that.
SEDJROX
We’ve seen the trend where food is included in visual storytelling concepts — as jewellery sets, as props, heck, even I used it in my shoot for this column. I don’t know if it’s inflation, but food has been doing more than it should these days. Sustaining both our bellies and our creative ideas.
A creator who is definitely making use of food, mainly fruit, is SEDJROXX. He creates the most outstanding photo opportunities using just fruit and things you can find around your home. He makes you look differently at the things you walk past daily.
Very editorial. Very cool. These definitely belong on magazine covers.
Kanye West Concert Set
It’s been weeks and I can’t stop thinking about Kanye West’s set at his SoFi Stadium show.
The stage design was out of this world. Literally.
The production for the SoFi Stadium show on April 1 featured Ye performing atop a globe-like structure that at times resembled our home planet, other planets, and at other times something far more abstract.
According to Complex, the set design was a collaborative process between Aus Taylor and Ye.
I thought it was brilliant, and fitting for someone who believes he’s one of the greatest to ever exist.
Watch more here: https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSQjrgqNm/
The Tokyo Project
Am I the only one who dreads public toilets like the plague? A lot of them are dirty, but they’re also really ugly and uninteresting.
To my shock, I learnt that other countries have reimagined what public toilets could look like.
In Japan, toilets are a symbol of the country’s world-renowned hospitality culture, so much so that they commissioned 16 world-class creators to redesign toilets in 17 locations across Shibuya, making them safe and comfortable for everyone regardless of gender, age or disability.
The creators were all tasked with designing a “simple” public toilet. This website lists the creators and shows the inspiration behind the toilets, including drawings and images.
I loved all of them, but I thought the contactless toilet was particularly cool. For germophobes (even though sometimes I fear technology will kill us one day), it looks futuristic and striking. You wouldn’t even think it was a toilet while walking past.
Another favourite was Vessels and Fountains. Here, the creator wanted to create a feature that could be used by everyone, whether they were using the restrooms or not.
The idea was to create a public hand-washing facility open not only to restroom users but to anyone. The facility acts as a shared vessel where people of different ages and purposes can gather to wash their hands, drink water and interact with one another.
I love that. A public toilet that doubles as a community space.
see more: https://tokyotoilet.jp/en/
Interviewing your parents/loved ones
One of the things I’m really grateful to my parents for is how many photos they took — of themselves and of us.
I didn’t appreciate it much growing up, but now, as a creative who takes a billion pictures a day and as an orphan, I appreciate it deeply. From time to time we stumble upon the photos they left us, and I’m filled with nostalgia and longing.
When I came across a video of a creator interviewing his father, I felt a deep lump in my throat. Wishing I could interview my parents today, or that I had thought to do it before they passed.
As the years go on, you start to forget little things — what they looked like, how they spoke, the way they carried themselves. So just like this creator urged us to interview our parents, if you're reading this and your parents are still alive, I urge you to do the same.
You don’t have to post it. It’s just for you to keep.
Ask them about their life story, their journey, lessons, wishes — anything you feel like, really.
See his video here: https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSQjPAx6R/
Interiors with personality
I don’t know where Namibians got the memo that our homes must be grey, have glass coffee tables, black wall units, that weird grey carpet, cold floors and hard, high suede or velvet headboards, but we need to collectively come together and talk about it.
Our homes can look and feel like us. They can have personality.
We don’t have to follow what everyone else is doing. They can be colourful. They can hold our traditions. They can definitely look like we actually live there.
And so can our offices and businesses.
My favourite account to follow right now is an interiors account that visits businesses in Nigeria, explores the inspiration behind their spaces and gives lengthy tours.
What I noticed is that they all feel so unique and African. The spaces are modern but make so much use of contemporary African influences.
Watch one of my favourite videos and space here: https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSQ23Hmya/
Follow the page: https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSQ23Hmya/
These things are not like the other
My favourite campaigns, collaborations and creative works lately are those that use elements that are completely unrelated.
Like when Maybelline and Nando’s collaborated. Or a drinks brand and a travel bag brand. Or Heinz and Absolut.
Some of these collaborations are pairings you’d never even think to put in the same sentence. And I think that’s exactly what makes them interesting. Scroll-stopping.
They create friction and win attention.
I’ve seen this across visual art, fashion, editorials and photo sets. It excites me and inspires me to think far more outside the box than I normally would.
Quickly, here are some of my favourite ads I’ve seen recently (a round-up within a round-up, crazy):
Kareem x Robinhood
One of my favourite things about creators in the global north is that their ideas can transcend their platforms.
When the right people see your idea, video or concept, companies recognise an opportunity to expand your creativity into not only paid work but something much bigger.
Think about Cutting Room signing deals that allow them to produce more of the brilliant work they’ve been creating. Think about the creator behind “very mindful, very demure” — campaigns were built around that phrase, brand deals followed, and she’s now a full-time creator because of the momentum from a single video.
And here’s another example.
A creator known for Subway Takes collaborated with an app and used his likeness and content style to create an ad. I love how this was shot.
Watch video here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DR8H_fxjozV/?igsh=MTZ2Zm91dm93eXow
CEC Magazine x New Balance
Ageing has been on my mind a lot lately. Not whether I fear it or embrace it — that’s a story for another day.
This campaign between CEC Magazine and New Balance explored ageing as a shared project, shaped by the people around us.
I loved the imagery of the talent — popular South African creatives — alongside their parents. The letters, the storytelling, the visual language and, of course, the styling.
Silly Little Hat & Compliments Cafe
A creator doing amazing work is Batt Maillie (LDN), a writer and director of exceptional social ads.
Both of these videos use humour, unexpected scenarios, unique perspectives and a fresh approach to social advertising.
It’s refreshing to watch content in a style you haven’t seen before. It feels like a window into the mind of someone creating work that doesn’t feel derivative.
Love his work.
The Waiting Room (Ferragamo)
I love how this ad is technically selling shoes, but is actually talking about the people wearing them.
Their personalities.
Their quirks.
All within a scenario most of us have experienced at some point: a waiting room.
Skylar Marshai for Cécred
Another creator with incredibly fresh ideas online is Skylar Marshai.
Everything she puts out feels refreshing, fun and showcases her high level of creativity.
I loved her newest work for Cécred, Beyoncé and Tina Knowles’ haircare brand.
She collaborated with other creatives to create this visual delight that showcases the products in a way that feels editorial, visually pleasing and just plain beautiful.
Every time she releases something, I’m stunned by the level of execution.
That’s all from the first volume of Good Taste.
There is so much good work in the world worth highlighting and shedding light on, especially in a time when we consume everything so quickly. We scroll, like, save and move on. Rarely do we stop to digest it, dissect it, or think about what the artist, designer, filmmaker or creative was trying to make us feel, see or understand through their work.
My hope is that this column gives us a reason to slow down and do exactly that.
So, what was your favourite from this volume? Had you seen any of these before? What were your thoughts? And is there anything you think I should see?
Comment below. Let’s talk about it.