Google rarely does much advertising of its products—at least traditional advertising, like TV commercials and print ads. But the Mountain View, California-based Internet company put on a three-day experiential stunt over the weekend. Starting with a media launch on Thursday evening, Google promoted its new artist themes for iGoogle, the customizable homepage for Google users, with an outdoor gallery of sorts.
Google event marketing manager Lorin Pollack coordinated a stunt that projected moving images of the artwork onto the facades of several buildings on a highly trafficked corner of the meatpacking district—where Little West 12th Street and Ninth Avenue meet Gansevoort Street—between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. Using large projectors, San Francisco-based Obscura Digital illuminated the front of the Hotel Gansevoort, Pastis, Theory, and Inn LW12 with colorful imagery designed by the likes of Marc Ecko, Jeff Koons, Michael Graves, Mark Morris, and Yves Behar. And to give visitors an area to play around with the themes, Google also provided a lounge with computer stations under a clear-top tent.
For the press conference and media launch, Production 911—a newly formed production company—decked out One Little West 12th with white furniture, colored votives (to represent those used in the company's logo), and Google-branded pillows. The event brought in creative types like Marc Ecko and Anne Geddes to speak about the collaboration.
