O N C R E A T I V I T Y A N D C O L L A B O R A T I O N July 30, 2013 Newsletter I N T H I S I S S U E Buyers Talk: Business As Usual During Renovation Upcoming Events: Gift Fairs Selecting Source Images When Copyrights Dominate a Collection A C A S E S T U D Y Coping with Copyrights: A Case Study Master Class: Country Music Hall of Fame ABOUT DAVID HOWELL & COMPANY The world of museums, where art and design are accessible to all, is where David Howell fuels his passions. His innovative gift designs are inspired by museum pieces, adapting historic motifs to modern products and honoring the original work in a new and complete way. David Howell & Company has specialized in the design and manufacturing of sophisticated museum quality products for 30 years. Clients include: Eiffel Tower Metropolitan Museum of Art Sydney Opera House The British Museum Company Van Gogh Museum White House Historical Association And though the company s client list P h o t o c o u r t e s y o f C o u n t r y M u s i c H a l l o f F a m e a n d M u s e u m When the CMA (Country Music Award) Music Festival returned to Nashville this summer, it brought with it a record-breaking crowd of 80,000 country music fans. As the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum prepared for this high volume of traffic, Director of Merchandising and Retail Development Mark De Lelys saw a golden opportunity. Working with David Howell & Company, De Lelys and his team set out to launch a collection of new gift products just in time for the CMA Music Festival. As David searched for source material in the museum s vast galleries, he discovered that the nature of the collections presented some unique design challenges. Country music may be driven by lyrics and the telling of stories, but it is also highly commercial, David explains. Most lyrics are copyrighted. Major corporate sponsors are prominent. Product development must find iconic images that stand apart.
spans the globe, all products are produced in the U.S, adhering to strict environmental standards and resulting in well-crafted gifts that stand the test of time. Howell rounds out his portfolio of museum gift offerings as the official North American representative for Van Gogh Musuem and Swiss pen maker Prodir. A favorite among visitors is the museum s collection of glitzy, one-of-a-kind costumes worn by country music legends. But copyrights make even those iconic outfits difficult to adapt to products. Gold records, as a concept, however, are free of copyrights, and because the museum has hundreds of them on display, David Howell & Company seized the opportunity to pair the iconic disk with the Hall of Fame s popular logo to create a 24-karat gold ornament. B U Y E R S T A L K Business As Usual During a Retail Renovation Mark De Lelys has made tough choices to keep retail operations running smoothly during the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum s $100 million expansion project, which will add three retail stores to the sprawling campus this year. With the water shut off due to construction and crews noisily jack hammering concrete outside his office, he sat down to share there renovation survival tips. P h o t o c o u r t e s y o f C o u n t r y M u s i c H a l l o f F a m e a n d M u s e u m David Howell & Company designed additional new products adapted from an iconic architectural element of the building and from a historically significant painting for which the museum held the copyright. To learn more about the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and to shop the museum s online store, visit CountryMusicHallOfFame.org. Pay attention to product sales as you move and relocate things. You may learn valuable information about merchandise location and traffic patterns. Losing selling space is not always a bad thing. Fewer products in a better- merchandised space may well be more productive in the end. Your staff members are the best ambassadors for your institution. Give them the tools to pass along positive, helpful information, not their own frustration. Provide helpful signs so guests are informed about what is going on or what is to come. View time- lapsed, webcam video of the renovation on the museum s capital campaign microsite. M A S T E R C L A S S : Inside the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum From the largest, fine art museums in the world to small, historical houses, botanical gardens, national parks, and cultural attractions, David Howell & Company s clients are diverse in size, stature, and sensibility. David Howell has toured most of them several, more than once to inform and inspire his product designs. In this new Master Class feature, David becomes your personal docent as you tour museums and experience art and architecture the way he experiences them. It s an exclusive opportunity to learn firsthand from David s years of experience as he offers advice along the way. Our first installment takes us to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee.
UPCOMING EVENTS NY Now (formerly New York International Gift Fair) Aug. 18-21, 2013 Booth #7366 Lesson 1 Turn icons into iconic products. If your building design includes an iconic element, adapt it and use it to inspire product designs. Las Vegas Souvenir & Resort Gift Show Sept.17-20, 2013 Booth #7366 *Note: Our NYIGF booth is in a new location this year. My experience with a museum begins before I even walk through the door, explains David Howell, president of David Howell & Company. Whether classical or contemporary, the façade starts to tell me the museum s story. As he approaches the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, David is struck not only by the unusual architecture but also by the enormous, sculptural tower protruding from the roof. Once inside, David learns that the distinctive tower is steeped in country music history. On the outskirts of Nashville stands an old antenna belonging to WSM Radio, the AM station that has broadcast the famous Grand Old Opry since 1925. The antenna that once beamed country music across America is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places and paid homage by the museum s sculptural tower overlooking the country music capital of the world. B u i l d i n g p h o t o c o u r t e s y o f C o u n t r y M u s i c H a l l o f F a m e a n d M u s e u m David snaps still photographs of the iconic tower and later draws upon the images to design show-stopping earrings that will be equally iconic in the museum store. Mark De Lelys, the museum s director of merchandising and retail development, says, The adaptation of the building not only acknowledges the important role of radio, but also evokes a church steeple, reminding people of the highly important role that church and gospel music play in country music.
Lesson 2 If you have a strong name or logo, use it with iconic images. Continuing on the tour, David admires a collection of guitars and other instruments, each with its own story. The instruments are interesting, he notes, but difficult to make into original products. Then David sees a wall lined with a spectacular display of framed, shimmering circles and begins taking pictures. Each is a replica of one of the more than 854 gold and platinum record awards issued to country-related albums. David adapts the iconic disk with the museum s distinct logo for a glamorous, gold record ornament. The design of the logo echoes the front of a train, which shares a long, inextricably linked history with country music, explains De Lelys. It has good traction with our visitors, and we use it on product whenever appropriate. Lesson 3 Look in your collection for classic, beautiful, interesting and appealing images of patterns that adapt well to product. With camera in hand, David enters the main rotunda, where bronze plaques honor the music makers who have been inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. In the rotunda, there s a painting that asks to be made into product, he says. Origins of Country Music by Thomas Hart Benton is rich, thought provoking, and honest. It s the heart of country music and the heart of the museum. David adapts the piece to a trio of historically significant bookmark designs. After the tour, David returns to his New York studio inspired and ready to design. The visit leaves De Lelys feeling inspired, too.
It was great fun to see the photos David snapped of things he thought would be great possibilities for products, he says. We came up with a roster of items and have prioritized those for development. P R O D U C T D E T A I L S Gold Record Ornament: Solid brass ornament is electro-plated with 24K gold (3 mils), giclée printed, and suspended from gold silk ribbon. (Available for purchase from the museum s online store.) Tower Earrings: Solid brass and electro-plated with non-tarnishing silver finish, these earrings are embellished with a glass bead detail and suspended from hypo-allergenic ear wires. (Available for purchase from the museum s online store. ) Guitar Player Bookmark and Dulcimer Player Bookmark: Giclée printed, solid brass bookmarks are electro-plated with non-tarnishing silver finish and adorned with a tassel. David Howell & Company 405 Adams Street Bedford Hills, NY 10507 Phone: (914) 666-4080 www.davidhowell.com