First Published on: The Drum
The Clio Awards is turning 60 this year, and to celebrate the organization has unveiled a sprawling painting honoring advertising’s pioneers, trailblazers and most recognizable icons from the past six decades.
The Clio organization worked with BBDO Los Angeles to honor some of the iconic men, women and ideas from the past 60 years that have defined the modern advertising era by canonizing them in a work of art as grand as their contributions to our industry. The result is a sprawling renaissance-style painting by Brooklyn-based illustrator and artist Sam Spratt.
With a larger-than-life Clio at the center, the image is a homage to the pioneers like George Lois, Mary Wells Lawrence and modern movers, such as Dan Wieden and David Kennedy, plus David Droga and Sir John Hegarty, among others.
The painting also takes a trip through advertising icon history, with a look at the most beloved characters that have shaped our popular culture – from the Kool-Aid Man to The Bud Knight, the M&M’s, the Subservient Chicken and Spuds Mackenzie.
Visitors to Clio60.com can interact with the painting, hover over a character and click on them to find out more on any character. Fans are urged to share their thoughts on social using the #Clio60 hashtag.
“The Clio Awards program has been a witness to some of advertising's greatest creatives and campaigns over the past six decades. So, for the 60th anniversary, BBDO LA helped Clio launch a commemorative campaign, adopting a modern take on a Renaissance painting to immortalize those who have claimed their place in advertising history,” said David Cuccinello, executive creative director, BBDO in LA.
Added David Povill, executive creative director, BBDO in LA: “We approached Brooklyn-based artist Sam Spratt, as he was perfect to combine the classic Renaissance style with a modern sensibility. Picking the artist was easy. Deciding whom to feature in the painting was more like planning a wedding (with limited seating and divorced parents). Luckily, we were able to work closely with Clio and their vast library of award-winning work to determine just the right mix of stories, work, and icons that truly captured the last 60 years of advertising greatness.”
Vote for the campaign by clicking on the Creative Works box below.