ZHEK-ART

TitleZHEK-ART
BrandTHIS PROJECT IS ORIGINAL AND NON-PROFIT
Product/ServiceTHE ONLINE MUSEUM OF ZHEK-ART IS AN EXTENSIVE MULTIDISCIPLINARY PROJECT WITH BRIGHT TYPOGRAPHY DESIGNED ESPECIALLY FOR IT, 2D ILLUSTRATIONS AND 3D OBJECTS, ANIMATION, AND A 360-DEGREE PANORAMA ON THE MAIN PAGE.
Category C01. Digital & Interactive Design
Entrant GOLDEN TIGERS OF RUSSIA Moscow, RUSSIA
Idea Creation GOLDEN TIGERS OF RUSSIA Moscow, RUSSIA
Media Placement GOLDEN TIGERS OF RUSSIA Moscow, RUSSIA
PR GOLDEN TIGERS OF RUSSIA Moscow, RUSSIA
Production GOLDEN TIGERS OF RUSSIA Moscow, RUSSIA
Post Production GOLDEN TIGERS OF RUSSIA Moscow, RUSSIA
Credits
Name Company Position
Sergey Naumov Golden Tigers of Russia Creator
Agata Korovina Golden Tigers of Russia Special correspondent
Masha Ermolaeva Golden Tigers of Russia Producer
Misha Tsygan Golden Tigers of Russia Creative Director
Tanya Cohen Golden Tigers of Russia Chief editor
Katya Shchechina Golden Tigers of Russia Literary editor
Anton Lukin Golden Tigers of Russia Technical Director
Aidar Bekchintaev - 3D modeler
Irene - - Designer
Igor Fatkin - Photographer
Oleg Postoev - Developer
Vitaly Terletsky - Artist and comics writer
Alina Berezovskaya - Designer
Artyom Bizyaev - Artist, creator of the lego set

Background

Just as one can recognize New York City buildings by their fire escape ladders or the streets of Lisbon by the laundry that dries on clotheslines, the yards of hi-rise blocks in the former Soviet Union have their own identity too. ZHEK-art is an essential part of this identity. Makeshift zoomorphic and anthropomorphic figures made of bottles, tires, and spare details, can be found all over Russia. The peculiarity of ZHEK-art is its spontaneity. No one can say exactly who started this fad and why it has proved so resilient. We believe that the craftsmen and craftswomen of ZHEK-art can be considered the pioneers of upcycling, and that ZHEK-art itself is a branch of art brut.

Describe the creative idea (40% of vote)

This project is original and non-profit. Our agency acted as the ambassadors of ZHEK-art without appropriating the movement. It remains free and democratic. We wanted to tell the audience about the history of ZHEK-art, show its creators, typologize works, and, most importantly, redefine its role in the culture. We also made a try to remove its pejorative label and show its uniqueness. The project meets the brand’s values: it combines digital and naive art, retro aesthetics and a progressive approach. It is comprehensible to all generations, from boomers to zoomers. The intended audience of the project mostly consists of young active urban residents (18-40 y.o.), students, employees of creative industries, who prefer local brands (small and medium-sized businesses) and value authenticity. They are also interested in technology, urbanism, and memes.

Describe the execution (40% of vote)

It is impossible to tell the story of ZHEK-art and its characters without immersing in their natural habitat. That’s why we put the digitalized characters of ZHEK-art into a panoramic image of a real Russian yard and encouraged the audience to interact with it. Users may wander around the yard, examine the characters from different angles, and create their own swan or Cheburashka out of tires and pipes.The online museum of ZHEK-art is an extensive multidisciplinary project with bright typography designed especially for it, with 2D illustrations and 3D objects, animation, and a 360-degree panorama on the main page. All the models of the ZHEK-art objects on the site were based on photos of actual figures found in Russian yards. Moving from theory to practice along the menu, we encourage the user to become an artist. DIY section contains Canvas-based constructor, where a person may upload any background and create

List the results (20% of vote)

As an image-making project, it draws attention to the team of a new creative bureau. One of its points was to get mentions in mass media and gain a reputation among potential clients. Large-scale PR campaign included collaborations with popular Internet artists. A ZHEK-art Lego set was modelled by Artem Biziaev, Vitaly Terletski drawed a limited edition of printed comic strip, also an AR mask was released on Instagram. The Village, Esquire, TJournal, Dozhd TV channel, Afisha, Moslenta, and more than 30 other Russian and international media wrote about the project, including the ones that specialized on advertising.