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April 22, 2004
Sex in Advertising, a Creative Roundtable

CO-OP Editorial, Santa Monica

It was Earth Day. Spring had sprung. And it seemed like a fine time for a bunch of creatives to get together to talk about sex. In advertising. Lucklily, CO-OP Editorial offered their beautiful Santa Monica space for the event and we enjoyed their great hospitality for three program-packed hours. Many thanks to Bob, Jim, Virginia, Francis and Ben at CO-OP for the fine party.

The LACC, being of, by, and for creatives, has usually been fairly unconcerned about the propriety of its communications. This has not gone unremarked, actually. So in some respects, the evening's subject matter was meant to encourage some debate among its members about what the LACC has done in the past, and whether or not it was appropriate. But we couldn't get anybody to talk about that. So we talked about the Swedish Bikini Team instead.

For instance, the Roundtable featured: • LACC Executive Director Roger Poirier presenting: a case study on the Swedish Bikini Team (a campaign created by CW Patrick Scullin and AD Marcus Kemp); a review of the Advertising Women of New York's Good, Bad & Ugly Awards; and a look at past LACC sex-themed communications (Mixing Business with Pleasure; Pimp 'n Ho-Ho-Ho). • A brief discussion on subliminal advertising by Barnard McGrane from Chapman University. (Including vigorous rebuttal from members of the audience!) • Presentations of sexy work by Lori Mayfield, Leslie Goodbar, Paul Elliston, Jim Hallowes, Emilia Serrano, Enrique Ahumada, Luis Camano, Bill Kelman, and Jillian Stern.

a poster by Paul Elliston

a radio spot by Lori Mayfield

a website by Leslie Goodbar

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For those curious about such things, there was plenty of flirting throughout the evening, but no dancing on tabletops or
removal of clothing (see below). Many thanks to Roundtable chair Paul Elliston for thinking up the event, and pulling it together.

Photos by Enrique Ahumada.