Lee Cooper (1982)

Blueman Oy manufactured and sold not only traditional jeans but also jackets and blouses. For marketing purposes, we needed to find an upbeat yet different subject. I thought that we should pick a suitable group of young people driving an American car in a sandy desert. In the sketch I prepared, however, I didn't put the car speeding down the road, but in a situation where the car has long since run out of gas, and it's broken down and stuck in the sand. But the movement does not stop. The mind will continue racing forward, the flag will keep flying and it will be raised again and again.

The gravel pits in Hyrylä were chosen as the location. I borrowed an old worn-out American car, no wheels, from a local junk shop. I made the flag from old linen and painted it with Lee Cooper colours.

The weather did not favour us, and we had to postpone the photoshoot for a week. However, we were a bit worried about how the car could cope. The local youth often spent time driving in the gravel pit. What if they get excited about breaking the car? I decided to make an information board by the pit for visitors to explain why the car was there. I wrote that the car will be used in Lee Cooper's jeans advertisement and that it would be really nice if the car could stay “in the current condition”.

When we arrived with the film crew, the car was in its original condition, just like the sign I had made. The shooting could start. We used three men and one woman as models, and they were also able to absorb into the unusual subject. The photos worked well and were used to produce a poster for in-store use and full-page magazine ads.

In the beginning of the 2000s, Blueman Ltd underwent some changes and the name was changed to M.A.S.I. Company. For the cover of the new company's "Blue Road" history book, we chose an image we had created that was considered to reflect the company's history. "The flag has sometimes almost fallen, but it was always raised back - together.”

Advertising agency: Varis Poteri Veistola Oy

Designers: Viktor Kaltala, Jaana Lappo

Photo: Kaj G. Lindholm