Love Our Work: Jess McLure on The Audacity of The Hallway’s Campaign for Boody
Bravery is a word that gets thrown around quite a bit within advertising. The work was brave, it’s so brave to see this and that on display.
It gets to the point where we forget bravery in a commercial setting actually looks like. Jess McLure, recognises the bravery of The Hallway's work for Boody. Boody's 'Make Yourself Comfortable' sees bodies of all shapes and sizes celebrating the relief that overwhelms the body when taking off those bras and undies that are just uncomfortable.
The bravery of this work isn't just in it's ability to take the human body and transform it into a piece of art worthy of Matisse himself, but also in the fact that there is no product on display.
Without a product displayed, the campaign invites the audience to think about their own bodies in that very moment in time. Is anything riding up? Is there a piece of underwire that poking out and scratching your ribs? What is happening to you in the moment you see the OOH. It leaves a lasting impression, making audiences think about how they could make themselves more comfortable.
LBB's Casey Martin spoke to Paper Moose's art director, Jess in a continuations of the Love Our Work series about the sheer amount of audacity portrayed by The Hallway.
LBB> Firstly, why do you like this particular piece of work?
Jess> Boody’s ‘Make yourself comfortable’ campaign solves a problem that’s been bugging me for over 20 years – painful bra marks with more staying power than tattoos. And that’s why I love it.
When I saw this ad I got pretty excited. Actually, my first thought was ‘the audacity’! Disbelief that such a product would exist (I’m late to the wireless bra party), followed by insane jealousy because I wish I’d made the ad.
I also love the simplicity. It lets the image do the talking. A brave move since it slaps you in the face with the problem. Something people could confuse with the product. A worry I’m sure came up pre-launch. Luckily the audience is given more credit. There’s no product shot, no over explaining, no boring list of features you’d probably skip anyways. Just a simple line ‘Make yourself comfortable’ and the logo. Pair this with the visceral phantom bra pain you feel from the image, and instantly, you want better from your underwear drawer.
LBB> In your opinion, what makes work great?
Jess> What makes this ad so great is that it leans into a relevant cultural insight. The ad didn’t just reel me in, it got me fired up. And my other colleagues too. I didn’t realise how secretly angry myself and other women felt about the oppression of wired bras until a Slack conversation in our ‘Ladies of Moose’ channel kicked off. Fresh off the back of seeing this ad and inspired by the promise of comfort, someone asked for a comfy bra reccy. It didn’t take long for us to get riled up in a passionate rage. This rage escalated into plans to burn our most hated bras and wedgie inducing undies in a weird bonding ceremony of sorts. I wouldn’t say we were ready to participate in the ‘free the nipple’ movement, but we were definitely ready to free our chest from pain! Of course we haven’t burned our bras … yet. They’re still annoying the hell out of us, jamming our underwear drawers.
As is the case with many products and services for women until recently – there’s a lot to be desired. Thankfully, times are changing and we’re now seeing more thought and innovation in this space (underwear, healthcare, sex products, pregnancy and breastfeeding etc.) thanks to more women entering leadership roles and making the big decisions.
We’ve had years of being passionately underwhelmed. Brands that understand insights like this about their target audience and acknowledge them in smart and refreshing ways are sure to get some love!
LBB> When looking for inspiration, do you believe it is important to look outside of your own agency?
Jess> Absolutely. It’s tempting to gush over work that’s won awards but it’s also important to see what’s happening outside of advertising. I’m obsessively collecting, bookmarking, note-taking on things I've stumbled across in culture. If I don’t, my ideas turn stale pretty quickly. Plus, it’s always a welcome break looking outside of advertising.
LBB> How do you hone your own creativity?
Jess> Honestly, I’m not sure if I’ve ever honed my creativity because it always feels like a hot chaotic mess, but I do try to nurture it. Besides immersing myself in culture, I try to seek out new experiences. My mind craves novelty and I often feel myself getting antsy and irritable when things start to feel repetitive. My imagination certainly suffers. Alone time and stillness to process and reflect also helps. Running or walking usually does the trick. I find that with a bit of fresh air and moving my body, little sparks of ideas can find their way to me.
LBB> Lastly, what does creativity mean to you?
Jess> Creativity for me is about being brave and vulnerable. There’s a temptation to do what’s been done before or what feels comfortable, but that’s skipping the chaos entirely – the kind of thing you need to make novel, unexpected work. When you relinquish control and just trust your gut, it’s scary but equally thrilling. If you sweat hard enough you’ll eventually stumble onto something pretty cool, great or flat out amazing. At the very least you might surprise yourself. And this ad certainly surprised me.
