Presentations

We Completed the tcny Project /  by Billy Potts

We undertook an unusual project earlier this year- our friends from Ascot Chang Co. Ltd asked us to rebrand their younger brand, tcny.  tcny specializes is customized tailoring.

After 8 months of work, we completed an entire re-branding. Pretty amazing to think that at the beginning we were told that the logo and image would NEVER change.  After some persistence (from ourselves and Justin and Lincoln Chang of Ascot Chang), not only did we manage to change the logo but we were actually able to reshape tcny’s entire brand image through labels, tags, videos, photography, web design, store design- everything!

 

 

This project was great fun since we got to collaborate with many great people: Tom Lee, Albert Tong and our long time collaborator, Linda Huang.

Berlin Happened Awhile Ago /  by Billy Potts

Yes, I've been a little slow with the posting so I'm continuing with the update.   I went to they DMY Design Festival in Berlin with Ambassadors of Design - that happened in June. The Handsome team decided to do something a little bit different from usual – we had a tiny bit of funding and about 2 weeks so we made some simple slide projectors out of leftover plastic from a sign maker in Fortress Hill, some lenses from a laboratory glassware shop in Wong Chuk Hang, a few metal rods from a hardware store in To Kwa Wan and some Ikea lamps (Causeway).

We made our own customized slide format!  (Thanks to Elise Bourdeau and Ali Van for helping out with that).  We were hoping for traditional slides from those old school slide projectors but apparently nobody does that anymore.  Ours turned out beautifully.

The exhibition hall was brighter than I had anticipated so we built a tent out of material from taxi seats – thanks to Martin Cheung and Topaz Leung (notice that the main supports are photographic light stands), Amus Leung, Gladys and Janko.

I hung out by the tent and people came over to play with the projectors and ask  about Hong Kong.  Some curious people stayed and chatted for over an hour.  One person said it was like the storyteller's tent they used to have at country fairs.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Porcelain Has Landed - Thank You To The Whole Team /  by Billy Potts

After one car crash, one replacement van, 2 storage spaces, 2 trips to Shenzhen, one successful trip through customs and a taxi ride the porcelain shells have finally made it to Hong Kong and are now safely at Detour for installation - we weren't sure it was going to make it - thanks to our new friends and co-workers: Victor who made the molds and fired the porcelain and went well out of his way to make sure that it got to us in time, Julian and Mr. Cheng, who helped us order and hack the NUD lamps, Mr. Lam, who transported our setup materials to Detour,  Tammy, Nickleby and Jayne, who helped with display materials and set up and my Mom (Clara Potts), who dropped me off in the car and waited while I moved the crates. An especially big thank you to the Shue Yan Student film crew and their dedicated teacher, Joanne, who helped me with carrying 2 hefty crates across the border last night- couldn't have done it without those guys.

Set Up At Detour - 23 November, 2011 /  by Billy Potts

Victor managed to get our porcelain artifacts down as far as Shenzhen and I'm going up there to get them tonight - after I give a guest lecture on design research at Polytechnic University with Erica Young.  Really looking forward to the lecture!

Luckily I've got some help down here in Hong Kong with Mr. Lam, our contractor, the Zixag guys and Tammy - we set up our display stands at Detour last night.  I think we shifted it about 15 times but finally decided on diagonal.  We're lucky because we've got a whole car parking spot to ourselves on the ground floor - completely unobstructed and next to Kacey Wong and Wong Tinyan's sculptures.

I've also got three student film makers from Shue Yan College shadowing me - with all these helpers and a student film crew, we're starting to look like a funny little parade.

Strida X Handsome UPDATE /  by Billy Potts

The Handsome Strida Bike is ready to hit the road!  Here it is being unveiled for the first time EVER before it goes to K11 for an exhibition on the use of Bikes in Hong Kong. Our concept?  Bikes can't completely replace other modes of transportation in Hong Kong but why can't they be a part of the transport network?  Make a little way and we could have an environmentally friendly and FUN way to get around - make your taxi a bike!

K11 has commissioned a limited run of Handsome Stridas

The exhibition runs from Friday the 24th of June, 2011

Location: K11 Mall 18 Hanoi Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Shop 105

Times: 11:00 am - 10:00 pm

Other participants in this exhibition are:

Creative Kids Ascot Chang HK Honey Graphic Airlines Flwrider Start From Zero

 

 

Representing /  by Billy Potts

Joe is still at the wheel of the Handsome Taxi over in Berlin and he's just been flagged down to exhibit at the Creative Ecologies Exhibition. We're parked right next to Freeman Lau, Alan Chan, Michael Young, Danny Fang and G.O.D. The Creative Ecologies exhibition will be open to the general public from 25 March till 9 December, 2011, at the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Berlin, at Jägerstrasse 33 (entrance at Oberwallstrasse), in Berlin-Mitte.

Enquiries about the exhibition can be made by calling +49 (0) 30 22 66 77 228.

 

New Home at the Commune /  by Billy Potts

We had our opening party at the Zixag Commune on Saturday- it was great to see some of you there.  Favourite part of the day was the audience's sigh of relief when I switched from English back into Canto for the presentation :D  (Kent's idea to start off in English).  Other highlights include HK trail running legend KK Chan buying a Melanie Messenger bag- now Handsome will be all the rage on the mountains.  Also had a good conversation with Luisa Mok re what constitutes environmentally friendly design. Thanks to Jeff and Kit for helping to get everything together and to Jess, Athena, Yat, Davey, Eudora, Joey, Keting and Andey for coming to support.  Big thanks to Julian, TC and Kent for making this possible- we're really going to enjoy our time working here.

 

 

 

TED X Youth Day 20/11/10 /  by Billy Potts

We'll be talking about our experiences with Handsome bag and what lead up to the formation of it at TED X Youth Day on the 20th of November, registration is happening now and will go on till next week. Lots of great speakers that day including, ukulele virtuoso, Jake Shimabukuro- should be a really fantastic event. You can register for a seat here

Carpet Banner and Leather Exhibition 10/09/10 - 26/09/10 /  by Billy Potts

We are part of the Carpet Banner and Leather UpCycling exhibition again- catch the last couple days at the JCCAC in Shek Kip Mei before it goes forever! There are some really great things which have been designed by some very talented and young HK creatives from very diverse backgrounds. My personal favourites are the Jerry Can speaker system, the scrap wood and leather pinhole cameras and the old QWERTY keyboard key USB sticks- of course those Taxi Bags are pretty cool too.