Brian Collins
Encyclopedia
Brian Collins is an American designer and creative director. He was the Chief Creative Officer of the Brand Innovation Group, Ogilvy & Mather
, in New York City for nine years (1998–2007), prior to starting his communication and branding firm, COLLINS:.
, the first LEED-certified gas station, which was built (in 2007) for BP in Los Angeles, with the firm Office dA and JohnstonMarkLee. They were awarded the Grand Clio in Design from the Clio Awards for this project.
In response to the events of 9/11, his team produced the exhibit and book Brotherhood, a tribute to New York City’s firefighters.
Collins’ team also produced a traveling international photo exhibit that explored what “beauty” meant to 60 female photographers. The intent of the exhibit and website, entitled Beyond Compare, was to broaden the definition of beauty to include women of all ages, shapes, and colors. As such it helped launch Dove’s “Campaign for Real Beauty.”
Collins produced The Ecology of Design, a handbook on environmental design thinking, published in 1996 by the AIGA
. He also initiated the annual forum “Designism: Design for Social Change,” sponsored by the Art Directors Club of New York. Panelists discuss the direction of the design industry and explore whether design and advertising demand a “social context.”
COLLINS: was retained by CNN to design The CNN Grill in Denver, Colorado and St.Paul, Minnesota. The combination restaurant/broadcast studios were timed to open during the Democratic and Republican National Conventions and were created as a proof point of the network's “CNN=POLITICS” mantra.
Collins is a board member of the VCU Brandcenter and the Art Director's Club of New York.
Collins has spoken about communication and design globally, including at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he is a member of the Global Agenda Council/Design.
In 2008 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the Art Center College of Design
in Pasadena, California.
The Massachusetts College of Art and Design
gave its Distinguished Alumni Award to Collins in 2004.
Fast Company magazine named Collins as one of five American “Masters of Design” in 2005.
The National Organization for Women gave his team its Image Award in 2006 for work they did on Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty.
Ogilvy & Mather
Ogilvy & Mather is an international advertising, marketing and public relations agency based in Manhattan and owned by the WPP Group. The company operates 497 offices in 125 countries with approximately 16,000 employees.-History:...
, in New York City for nine years (1998–2007), prior to starting his communication and branding firm, COLLINS:.
Ogilvy & Mather
His team's work at Ogilvy includes the design of a fantasy chocolate factory/retail store for Hershey in Times Square; the design of the new Motorola brand, the new Kodak logo, and a redesign of Sprite for Coca-Cola; the campaign and design program for New York City’s bid for the Olympic Games, NYC2012; the creation of Helios HouseHelios House
The Helios House is a gas station in Los Angeles, located on Olympic Boulevard. It is designed as a green station with special features and is considered to be the "station of the future." It is the first gas station in the United States to be submitted for LEED certification.The gas station was...
, the first LEED-certified gas station, which was built (in 2007) for BP in Los Angeles, with the firm Office dA and JohnstonMarkLee. They were awarded the Grand Clio in Design from the Clio Awards for this project.
In response to the events of 9/11, his team produced the exhibit and book Brotherhood, a tribute to New York City’s firefighters.
Collins’ team also produced a traveling international photo exhibit that explored what “beauty” meant to 60 female photographers. The intent of the exhibit and website, entitled Beyond Compare, was to broaden the definition of beauty to include women of all ages, shapes, and colors. As such it helped launch Dove’s “Campaign for Real Beauty.”
Collins produced The Ecology of Design, a handbook on environmental design thinking, published in 1996 by the AIGA
Aiga
‘Aiga is a word in the Samoan language which means 'family.' The aiga is the family unit of Samoan society and differs from the Western sense in that it consists more than just a mother, father and children. The Samoan family, also referred to as an 'extended family' is based on the culture's...
. He also initiated the annual forum “Designism: Design for Social Change,” sponsored by the Art Directors Club of New York. Panelists discuss the direction of the design industry and explore whether design and advertising demand a “social context.”
Collins
The first work from COLLINS: was covered by the New York Times on April 6, 2008. The story reviewed their design of the campaign to stop global warming done for the Alliance for Climate Protection, the organization founded by former Vice President and Nobel Laureate Al Gore. The campaign was developed with the Martin Agency of Richmond, Virginia.COLLINS: was retained by CNN to design The CNN Grill in Denver, Colorado and St.Paul, Minnesota. The combination restaurant/broadcast studios were timed to open during the Democratic and Republican National Conventions and were created as a proof point of the network's “CNN=POLITICS” mantra.
Collins is a board member of the VCU Brandcenter and the Art Director's Club of New York.
Collins has spoken about communication and design globally, including at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he is a member of the Global Agenda Council/Design.
Honors
In 2009, the firm was awarded a Gold Pencil from The One Show and a Gold Clio from the Clio Awards for their work.In 2008 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design is a private college located in Pasadena, California, and was cited by BusinessWeek as one of the 60 best design schools in the world. The college’s industrial design program is consistently ranked number one by both DesignIntelligence and U.S...
in Pasadena, California.
The Massachusetts College of Art and Design
Massachusetts College of Art
Massachusetts College of Art and Design is a publicly-funded college of visual and applied art, founded in 1873. It is one of the oldest art schools, the only publicly-funded free-standing art school in the United States, and was the first art college in the United States to grant an artistic degree...
gave its Distinguished Alumni Award to Collins in 2004.
Fast Company magazine named Collins as one of five American “Masters of Design” in 2005.
The National Organization for Women gave his team its Image Award in 2006 for work they did on Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty.
External links
- COLLINS: Brian Collins' New York based design group
- BrianThomasCollins.com Brian Collins' blog