Latest news with #TheArt
Campaign ME
21-03-2025
- Business
- Campaign ME
Pickl's first regional Ramadan campaign puts community at its heart
Pickl has launched its first regional Ramadan campaign, Pickl Giving, showcasing its commitment to local communities across the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, and Egypt. The month-long initiative is designed to foster engagement by inviting customers to share ideas on how the brand can give back, integrating public participation into its Ramadan activations. 'This was our first measured campaign across the region. Now that we have expanded into new markets across the Middle East, we've been given the opportunity to think across borders,' said Steve Flawith, Founder and CEO of Yolk Brands, the hospitality group behind Pickl. 'The objective was simple: to showcase that we are a homegrown brand from the region that genuinely cares about each and every community we sit in.' The campaign builds on Pickl's broader #BeLocal mission, which has previously highlighted initiatives such as delivery rider appreciation and environmental cleanups. For Ramadan, Pickl is expanding this commitment with a platform that allows its customers to shape its giving efforts. Through 'The Art of Giving,' the brand is encouraging community members to propose ways it can support charitable and social causes, aiming to translate these ideas into direct action. 'This Ramadan, we wanted to take one of the key pillars of Islam – Zakat – to really delve into what Ramadan means to our community, what their favourite memories are and if it were distilled into one word, what would that really boil down to,' said Flawith. Pickl Giving: A region-wide Ramadan campaign To activate Pickl Giving across its markets, the brand is rolling out targeted initiatives specific to each country. In the UAE, efforts include iftar meals for delivery riders, food donations, and a desert cleanup. In Qatar, activities range from blood donation drives to community food initiatives. Bahrain's campaign focuses on food drives and traditional Ramadan gatherings, and in Egypt, Pickl is supporting orphanages through meal donations. Pickl has also produced a Ramadan brand film, conceptualised and executed entirely in-house by Yolk Brands. The campaign video features notable regional figures, including Khalid Al Ameri, Hamad Al Hajri (CEO of Snoonu), and Reem Alzayani (Corporate Communications and ESG Director of Alzayani Investments), sharing personal reflections on the spirit of Ramadan and the power of giving. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Pickl MENA 🍔 (@ 'This entire campaign was conceptualised by our team, filmed across four countries, and storyboarded, edited, and launched in-house. Working on something this soulful, in collaboration with our partners across the region, truly showcases our team's raw talent,' Flawith added. 'It proves that impactful, beautiful advertising that resonates comes from passion, vision, and drive – not just big budgets.' A key element of the campaign is its interactive approach. Through customers can submit ideas for how the brand should engage in giving back. The initiative reflects Pickl's strategy of fostering customer-driven brand engagement while aligning with the cultural significance of Ramadan. 'Our final take for the campaign centred around the art of giving, showcasing how we're giving back to communities while also offering a way for those who may not be able to contribute directly to submit their ideas,' Flawith explained. 'From there, we would turn their ideas into action and give back on their behalf.' The campaign will be amplified across Pickl's digital channels, with ongoing updates and stories showcasing community participation. Building long-term consumer connections 'Pickl Giving' marks the brand's most extensive community-focused activation to date, with a focus on building long-term relationships with its audience through shared social impact efforts. The campaign underscores how brands in the region are increasingly building consumer connections through Ramadan. 'While localised, geo-targeted campaigns remain a key part of our strategy, these big regional moments are where we're planting our flag for the long haul,' Flawith noted. 'To prove that a simple idea, fuelled by passion, is worth its weight in gold.'
New York Times
10-03-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
She Goes to Trader Joe's for the Art
Good morning. It's Monday. Today we'll look at the art shoppers can find when they go to a Trader Joe's in Manhattan. Julie Averbach led the way into what she said was an art gallery. It didn't look like one. There were no velvet ropes in front of the most valuable pieces, and no little labels on the wall saying who had created the art. But this was not really an art gallery. It was a supermarket, the Trader Joe's at 2073 Broadway, near West 72nd Street, a place to experience 'the joy of finding beauty where we least expect it,' Averbach said. Above the refrigerated display cases and the fruit and vegetable bins. In the aisles. On the packages that sit on the shelves. 'When we typically go to a grocery store, we tend to look straight at the shelves, put the products in our carts, buy them and go home,' she said. 'I've come to look up, look down and go into a mode of art appreciation first and buying second. The store and the products themselves are art.' At Trader Joe's, she said, 'even a simple banana display becomes a 360-degree art installation' topped by King Kong, suspended from the ceiling. She moved on to a mural scene above the avocados. It showed four figures dancing on the Lincoln Center steps, with the Metropolitan Opera House in the background: a package of Joe-Joe's chocolate-and-vanilla-cream sandwich cookies, a bottle of pink lemonade, a shaker of 'Everything but the Bagel' seasoning and a can of corn. 'The corn can is a recurring symbol through a lot of Trader Joe's artwork,' she said. It turned up in a narrow painting of the Statue of Liberty a few steps away. Lady Liberty is holding a can of corn 'as her torch of enlightenment,' Averbach said. In the other hand is a box of Joe's O's cereal. The actual statue holds a tablet inscribed with the date July 4, 1776, in Roman numerals. Averbach is a Trader Joe's fan with an art historian's eye. She became so fascinated by what she saw in Trader Joe's locations that she wrote the book 'The Art of Trader Joe's: Discovering the Hidden Art Gems of America's Favorite Grocery Store' after devoting her thesis at Yale to Trader Joe's as a contemporary cabinet of curiosities. She did her research on her own, based mostly on 'what I could see in the stores as a regular shopper' who has visited more than 170 locations. She received no official help from the chain and put the word 'unauthorized' on the cover of the book to emphasize her independence. An email to Trader Joe's seeking comment went unanswered on Friday. Looking for what had inspired the images in packaging like the label for the store's Caesar salad, she spent 'countless hours' eyeing Victorian ephemera and paging through 19th-century magazines. (It's not Julius Caesar on the salad's container; it's Augustus, Caesar's great-nephew and adopted son.) And the image on the can of Trader Joe's French roast coffee? Averbach traced it to a 1913 book, 'The Spirit of Paris.' Averbach said that Trader Joe's is unusual among supermarket chains: Each store has in-house artists who create handmade signs, she said, so no two Trader Joe's stores look alike. And as Averbach discovered, the artists do more than make signs. In a Trader Joe's in Manchester, Conn., she found a chalk drawing of a figure that looked like the famous Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci. But this one had a Trader Joe's employee name tag with 'Mona L.' written on it. In other stores, Averbach found adaptations of Vincent van Gogh's 'Sunflowers,' Auguste Rodin's 'The Thinker,' Grant Wood's 'American Gothic' and Emanuel Leutze's 'Washington Crossing the Delaware.' In a Trader Joe's in Chicago, she found a representation of the late-night diner in Edward Hopper's 'Nighthawks' with a Trader Joe's sign above the window. Hopper said the restaurant in his painting was inspired by one in Greenwich Avenue in Manhattan, but the Trader Joe's image paid tribute to the painting's longtime home, the Art Institute of Chicago. Averbach talked about neighborhood references as she walked through the Trader Joe's on Broadway. That store is 'hands down the busiest Trader Joe's in the world,' the company said in 2021. Of the Trader Joe's locations in New York, it is her favorite aesthetically. But she also mentioned the store at 436 East 14th Street, where the illustrator Peter Arkle created more than 150 images called 'East Village Drawings.' They are keyed to a map in the store showing 'where you can find all the real things that inspired the drawings,' according to Arkle's website. In the Broadway store, even the elevators doors are art, painted to show dinosaurs shopping, a nod to the nearby American Museum of Natural History. The artists have also made something of places that are off limits to shoppers, as Averbach realized after seeing the exhibition 'Cubism and the Trompe l'Oeil Tradition' at the Metropolitan Museum of Art a couple of years ago. 'They could have simply written 'staff only' on the door,' Averbach said. 'They instead used the door as a canvas for a trompe l'oeil painting,' with a green T-shirt on a coat hanger. 'Who does that? It's amazing.' Expect a partly sunny sky, with the temperature reaching a high of 62. At night temperatures will drop to the low 40s. In effect until Friday (Purim). The latest metro news Home for the holidays Dear Diary: Back home from Boston for the holidays, Dean and Dylan and I watched 'Anora' at the Angelika because we were the last ones still on winter break. We walked uptown afterward, laughing about the movie and about the guy next to us who had laughed though the whole movie. I was going to turn off at 23rd Street to go to the PATH station. Dylan and Dean were going to keep walking to 33rd Street to catch the Q train. We walked a few blocks backpedaling as the cold wind blew hard at our faces. 'I'll see you guys again for spring break,' I said as I got ready to turn. 'I think I'll be on a spring break trip with some school friends,' Dylan said. 'All right,' I said. 'Well, some time else then. Love you bro, see ya.' 'No, bro,' Dean said. 'Keep walking to 33rd. There's a PATH station there, too.' And so we kept walking uptown, the Empire State Building in the distance. At 33rd, we said our goodbyes, and I ran down the steps to the PATH station as I had all through high school. I caught the last train home. — Ryan Rizvi Illustrated by Agnes Lee. Send submissions here and read more Metropolitan Diary here. Glad we could get together here. See you tomorrow. — J.B. P.S. Here's today's Mini Crossword and Spelling Bee. You can find all our puzzles here. Hannah Fidelman and Ed Shanahan contributed to New York Today. You can reach the team at nytoday@ Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox.
Globe and Mail
20-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Globe and Mail
Les Roberts Featured in Exclusive Interview on the Evolution of Art and Collecting
Miami Fine Art Gallery Director Shares Insights on Bridging Classical and Contemporary Art Les Roberts, Director of Miami Fine Art Gallery, has been featured in an exclusive online interview titled 'Les Roberts: The Art of Connecting the Past and Present.' In this deep dive into his life and work, Roberts discusses his passion for curation, the psychology of collecting, and how classical techniques continue to influence today's artists. Since taking over Miami Fine Art Gallery in 2008, Roberts has curated collections that merge historical masterpieces with modern, boundary-pushing works. His expertise, shaped by an Art History and Business degree from New York University and an internship at Sotheby's, allows him to seamlessly blend past and present, introducing audiences to the dynamic evolution of artistic expression. 'Art isn't just about aesthetics,' Roberts shares in the interview. 'It's a language that speaks across generations. What Rembrandt did with light and shadow, contemporary artists are doing with digital tools today.' In the interview, Roberts traces his journey from New York City, where he first developed his love for fine art, to Miami, Florida, where he saw an opportunity to create a gallery space that honored both classical and contemporary traditions. He explains how Miami's diverse culture and events like Art Basel Miami Beach have positioned the city as a global hub for collectors, artists, and enthusiasts alike. The discussion also touches on the psychology of art collecting, highlighting the emotional connections people form with artwork. Roberts notes that for many collectors, it's not just about investment—it's about identity, memory, and meaning. 'Some people collect because a piece reminds them of a specific moment in their life,' Roberts explains. 'Others are drawn to works that challenge them or reflect their personality. Either way, it's about making a connection.' Another key topic in the interview is the role of technology in the art world. Roberts shares how virtual exhibitions, digital collections, and AI-generated art are changing the way people experience and interact with fine art. 'Technology isn't here to replace traditional art,' Roberts says. 'It's enhancing it. It's making art more immersive, more accessible, and helping collectors visualize pieces in ways they never could before.' Looking ahead, Roberts sees a shift in the future of collecting. He predicts more artists will experiment with digital mediums, while collectors will seek deeper, more interactive experiences with the pieces they acquire. 'Art is timeless,' Roberts reflects. 'Whether it's a 300-year-old painting or a brand-new digital creation, its ability to make us feel, think, and connect with the world remains unchanged.' As he continues his work at Miami Fine Art Gallery, Roberts remains committed to honoring the legacy of classical artists while embracing the future of contemporary creativity. About Les Roberts Les Roberts is the Director of Miami Fine Art Gallery, where he curates collections that bridge the worlds of classical and contemporary art. With a background in Art History and Business from New York University and training at Sotheby's, he is dedicated to making fine art accessible and meaningful for collectors worldwide. To read the full interview, click here. Media Contact Company Name: Les Roberts of Miami Fine Art Gallery Email: Send Email City: Miami State: Florida Country: United States Website:
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Savannah Performing Arts Festival sponsor backs out due to drag performers
SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) – The Savannah Performing Arts Festival has lost a sponsor, putting them in a financial bind and organizers said the reason lies in who they have to speak at a panel discussion. 'We're having some of the city's best drag queens in to talk about the art of creating that illusion,' Rick Garman with the festival said. 'And when [the sponsor] found out that drag was going to be included in the festival, they pulled out. It's disappointing and offensive.' Garman said this is an event for all ages, and the daytime events are appropriate. According to him, it was no secret who their speakers and performers would be at their events. The panel, called 'Heels and Hair: The Art of Drag', is happening Thursday, Feb. 13 at 1 p.m. The discussion is only 45 minutes, which is a small portion of the festival compared to the remaining two weeks of events. The festival didn't say who the sponsor is or how much money they were giving but that it was a significant amount. Now, the organization is relying on credit cards and hoping they can keep the events going. 'Our performances, our panels and our musical and all that stuff that we're doing over the next two weeks has groups and people from all over the city, all different walks of life and all different kinds of art,' Garmin said. 'The arts should serve everyone. The idea that we would put on something that would exclude somebody just because we're worried that somebody is not going to like it, we're not going to do that.' If you would like to support the show, click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
