Jim Riswold
Encyclopedia
Jim Riswold was the former creative director
for Portland, Oregon
based advertising agency
Wieden+Kennedy
and an instructor for the agency's experimental advertising school, WK12: subject for WKE (WKEntertainment)
's upcoming web episodic documentary
, 12.
from 1976 to 1983, and received three bachelors degrees in communication
s, philosophy
and history
. He was brought into the agency as its first copywriter hire in 1984, supervising the Honda account. In his 14 years at Wieden+Kennedy, he created advertising campaigns such as the Mars Blackmon
(Spike Lee
), Michael Jordan
commercials for Nike
as well as the famous Bugs Bunny
–Jordan pairing. He also created the Bo Knows
campaign for Nike featuring Bo Jackson
, and the Tiger Woods
commercial, entitled "I Am Tiger Woods."
in 2000 and surviving for five years, Riswold quit advertising to become a full-time contemporary artist, going from "a career of selling people things they don't need to making things that people don't want".
Riswold's photographs have been shown in galleries throughout the Northwest and hang in the permanent collections of several museums. Most of his works poke fun at historically taboo figures Mao Zedong
, Adolf Hitler
and Benito Mussolini
by constructing monumental setting in which the figurines were photographer. Jim explained in his 2005 Esquire
article, Hitler Saved My Life that "Instead of providing […] grand expositions mythologizing the dictator, toys, by definition, make their subjects seem small, childish, and trifling."
Creative Director
A creative director is a position often found within the graphic design, film, music, fashion, advertising, media or entertainment industries, but may be useful in other creative organizations such as web development and software development firms as well....
for Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
based advertising agency
Advertising agency
An advertising agency or ad agency is a service business dedicated to creating, planning and handling advertising for its clients. An ad agency is independent from the client and provides an outside point of view to the effort of selling the client's products or services...
Wieden+Kennedy
Wieden+Kennedy
Wieden+Kennedy is an independently owned American advertising agency best known for its work for Nike...
and an instructor for the agency's experimental advertising school, WK12: subject for WKE (WKEntertainment)
WKE (WKEntertainment)
WKE is an independently owned American production company and arts and culture delivery channel, a subsidiary of the advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy...
's upcoming web episodic documentary
Documentary
A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...
, 12.
Career In Advertising
Riswold attended the University of WashingtonUniversity of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
from 1976 to 1983, and received three bachelors degrees in communication
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
s, philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
. He was brought into the agency as its first copywriter hire in 1984, supervising the Honda account. In his 14 years at Wieden+Kennedy, he created advertising campaigns such as the Mars Blackmon
Mars Blackmon
Mars Blackmon is a fictional character in the film She's Gotta Have It , played by its writer/director, Spike Lee. In the film, he is a "Brooklyn-loving", sports-loving, die-hard New York Knicks fan. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, "Mars Blackmon" became the primary pitchman in Nike...
(Spike Lee
Spike Lee
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks, has produced over 35 films since 1983....
), Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...
commercials for Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
as well as the famous Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...
–Jordan pairing. He also created the Bo Knows
Bo Knows
"Bo Knows" was an advertising campaign for Nike cross-training shoes that ran in 1989 and 1990 and featured professional baseball and American football player Bo Jackson....
campaign for Nike featuring Bo Jackson
Bo Jackson
Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson is a former American baseball and football player. He was the first athlete to be named an All-Star in two major American sports, and also won the Heisman Trophy in 1985....
, and the Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods
Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No...
commercial, entitled "I Am Tiger Woods."
Career In Art
After being diagnosed with leukemiaLeukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
in 2000 and surviving for five years, Riswold quit advertising to become a full-time contemporary artist, going from "a career of selling people things they don't need to making things that people don't want".
Riswold's photographs have been shown in galleries throughout the Northwest and hang in the permanent collections of several museums. Most of his works poke fun at historically taboo figures Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
, Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
by constructing monumental setting in which the figurines were photographer. Jim explained in his 2005 Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
article, Hitler Saved My Life that "Instead of providing […] grand expositions mythologizing the dictator, toys, by definition, make their subjects seem small, childish, and trifling."