Page 439 - Demo

ADVERTISING & MARKETING Brooklyn.IncGraphic Artists Set Their CAP Towards More BusinessWorking out of his house in Cobble Hill, Roy Sloane foresees a time when the advertising world of Madison Avenue will expand into Brooklyn. (Phoenix/Koch)BY LIZ KOCHMadison Avenue by many standards isthe advertising hub of the world, but thathigh-powered linear strip will soon be joinedby another hub on this side of the BrooklynBridge if a group of Brooklyn graphic artists and commercial communication professionals has its way. As Roy Sloane, headof Cobble Hill-based Advertising Management says, looking into the future, %u201cSomeday, maybe when people hear you are anart director from Brooklyn they%u2019ll think, oh,that%u2019s great!%u201dBrooklyn has a tradition of graphic artsand related businesses and in light of thathistory and the large industry already based here, Sloane, joined by Peggy Seeger ofAdvance Graphic on Third Avenue andBrooklyn copywriter John Sprite came upwith the idea to create an umbrellaorganization that would represent the largenumber of advertisers, illustrators, displaybuilders, photographers, and writersresiding in Brooklyn. The talent wasalready here; it was a cohesive force theysought.%u201cThe idea was kicking around for sometim e,%u201d Sloane says. %u201cWe felt there was atremendous opportunity here because somany people who are in the creative com %u00admunity reside and work in Brooklyn buthave clients in other parts of the world or inManhattan,%u201d he explains. %u201cWe hope tomake the borough better recognized as acreative center.%u201dThe concept for the organization reallyjelled last November when the small groupof organizers decided to initiate a drive todetermine how many representatives of thegraphic arts business were already locatedin Brooklyn and to pull them together as a%u201cbooster%u201d group for the industry. BrooklynCommunications Arts Professional (BCAP)was bom out of that effort. And on May 29,many of the members of the fledgling grouppresented their work at the Montauk Clubin Park Slope under the title of BCAP E xhibition, a display of works produced by exhibit designers, photographers, illustrators,and design companies.%u201cWe recognized two needs,%u201d Seeger says.%u201cFirst there were a lot of free lancers in thegraphic arts and communication arts inBrooklyn who were living just blocks apartand didn%u2019t know each other. The organization offers a networking and socializing opportunity for these people.%u201dThe second goal is more economic innature, and includes some long term goalsfor the borough as well as bringing work tothe artists already located here who oftenhead across the bridge in search of employment opportunities. Not to mention Brooklyn-based business who also trek acrossthe river to find companies to undertaketheir marketing and advertising needs.USE BROOKLYN RESOURCES%u201cThere are many businesses in Brooklynwho are not using modem advertisingtechniques and they go to Manhattan tohave the work done,%u201d Seeger explains. %u201cWeneed to get people in Brooklyn to useBrooklyn resources. There is no reason whythey should go to Manhattan and payManhattan prices,%u201d she adds. %u201cThe fiveperson Advance Graphics company has hadas clients the Brooklyn Academy of Musicand the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens and it isthose sort of relationships between Brooklynbusinesses and the artists that the grouphopes to foster.John Milisenda, a commercial photographer in Sunset Park, anticipates positiveoutcomes from the organization for both theartists residing here and businesses movinginto Brooklyn. %u201cI%u2019ve been meeting otherprofessionals and forming friendships on apeer level. More than I realized were inBrooklyn. I am also finding out resourcesand clients that I can draw on in Brooklynrather than go into Manhattan,%u201d he says.%u201cWith the people coming into Brooklynand moving into the Brooklyn Army Terminal and Bush Terminal, doors open upfor me. I am very conveniently located forthem. They can drive over in seconds forservices they would otherwise have to goManhattan for,%u201d he points out.WANTS ANNUAL DIRECTORYIn practical terms, the group hopes to putout an annual directory listing the commercial communication artists in Brooklyn.Another plan in the works is to hold sem inars to educate Brooklyn businesses on using the graphic arts and advertising services available here. %u201cWe are talking topeople at Brooklynworks and we are looking to hold educational seminars for thebusiness community to teach them aboutmodem market, modem design and advertising,%u201d Seeger explains. The group is alsoplanning m ass mailings as a means todisseminate information to other graphicartists in the borough, alerting them toBCAP.%u201cWe really don%u2019t have a sense of howmany typesetters, how many writers andphotographers there are out there. Thisorganization will act as a central place forthose people, and will offer a range oftalents and resources for people who needassistance in their marketing or advertising,%u201d Seeger adds.Margaret Cusack who has been creatingfabric illustrations from her home inBoerum Hill since 1972 and whose clientsThere are many businesses inBrooklyn who are not usingmodem advertising techniquesand they go to Manhattan tohave the work done. We need toget people in Brooklyn to useBrooklyn resources.have included American Express, HowardJohnson%u2019s, Perrier, and Texaco, views thenew organization as another m eans to gether work out in the world. %u201cBasically it is away to be seen and get work out and meetother professionals,%u201d she says.SOME FAMOUS BROOKLYN NAMESIn the larger schem e of the advertisingworld, Sloane sees the group dynamic of thisorganization as being an effective means toestablish the graphic arts industry inBrooklyn, and industry that he considersmore poeple oriented and a natural followup to Brooklyn%u2019s history. A number offamous names in the industry have comeout of Brooklyn including George Lois oneof the premier art directors of the Sixtiesand Seventies, and Paul Rand, who developed the now ubiquitous IBM logo. Sloanhimself had Haagen Daaz as a client for 11years during which time the company wentfrom being a garage operation in the Bronxto being the country%u2019s best selling ice cream.%u201cGraphic arts is the largest business inNew York behind the garment industry andin Brookyn where developments like MetroTech are expected to bring in high-tech industry we can say we already have thehigh-tech here in the form of communications professionals,%u201d he says.%u201cWith developments like the Fishport andthe graphic arts complex in the BrooklynArmy Terminal we want to show them thatthe ancillary services that they need for allthese companies are right here in Brooklyn.We can make a big difference if we organize and demonstrate our strong tr^ n t,%u201d hesays.CAN MAKE BUSINESS DIFFERENCEBCAP is seeking support from localelected officials to encourage the establishment of the arts industry in Brooklyn. %u201cAspart of the future of the borough this workis very important,%u201d Sloan expalins. %u201cBrooklyn Union Gas and the Brooklyn Academyof Music do very professional marketingbut smaller businesses here are not usingthe modem techniques the rest of the worldis using and that%u2019s hurting. We want to introduce them to better advertising, inexpensive talent, better displays, and publicity.These things can make a difference between winning and losing.%u201dThe group which currently has a membership of approximately 20 will bereaching out to roughly another 400 artistsin the field and is seeking to augment thework being undertaken by the BrooklynEconomic Development Corporation tomarket Brooklyn to the graphic arts industry. %u201cWe hope to be meeting with all thelocal elected officials and the Chamber ofCommerce,%u201d Sloane says. %u201cThere will be acompound positive effect for both of us butalso a positive effect on Brooklyn businesses because advertising and marketinghelps everyone keep working and it keepsthem buying things. A company%u2019s ability tocommunicate is crucial. It%u2019s creativity thatkeeps the economy moving,%u201d he explains.%u201cIf we could just yell loud enough and attract attention, the businesses that we wantwould move here and as a small group wecould make a difference in the future of theborough,%u201d he says. %u201cIt%u2019s a logical extensionof Madison Avenue. The ad agencies arestarting to move downtown in Manhattan.As evidence to the history of commercialartists in Brooklyn, Sloane points to an eventback in the Fifties. %u201cWhen the Sovietmaster spy Abel was caught, his cover wasthat he worked as a commercial photographer in Brooklyn,%u201d Sloane says and addssimply: %u201cIt%u2019s a Brooklyn stereotype.%u201dFor additional information on BCAPand future programs call, (24-40(7.Margaret Cusack's clients include Texaco and Perrier but she hopes to expand herclientele In Brooklyn. (Phoenix/Koch photo)Avery Marder from Trade Mark Graphics, Inc., showed the work of his company alongwith other Brooklyn artists at the Brooklyn Communications ARts Professional show.(Phoenix/Koch photo)August 14.1986, THE PHOENIX/BROOKLYN.INC SECTION TWO, Pag* 17