"The result is an imagistic glut, sensory exhaustion, and a diminution of impact. What can we do now? How can we move forward in the new era of technology? The answer may be heretical, but it isthis. "
The screen changed dramatically, to a forest image. Huge trees rising toward the sky, shade beneath. Then a snowy mountain peak. A tropical island, an arc of sand, crystalline water, palm trees. And, finally, an underwater reef, with fish swimming among coral heads and sponges.
"The natural world," Koss intoned, "is entirely without advertising. The natural world has yet to be tamed. Colonized by commerce. It remains virgin."
From the darkness: "Isn't that rather the point?"
"Conventional wisdom would put it so. Yes. But conventional wisdom is invariably out of date. Because in the time it has taken to become conventional - to become what everyone believes - the world has moved on. Conventional wisdom is a remnant of the past. And so it is in this case."
On the screen, the reef scene was suddenly branded. Coral branches had lettering that readBP CLEAN . A school of small fish wriggled by, each winkingVODAFONE, VODAFONE . A slithering shark withCADBURY curving across the snout. A puffer fish withLLOYDS TSB GROUP in black lettering swam over convoluted heads of brain coral, withSCOTTISH POWER printed along the ridges in orange. And, finally, a moray eel poked its head out of a hole. Its greenish skin pattern saidMARKS & SPENCER .
"Think of the possibilities," Koss said.
The audience was stunned - as he had expected it would be. He pressed on with the argument.
The slide now showed a desert scene, with spires of red rock rising against a blue sky laced with clouds. After a moment, the clouds coalesced into a larger, misty cloud that hung above the landscape and said:
BP MEANSCLEANPOWER.
"Those letters," Koss said, "are nine hundred feet high. They stand a quarter of a mile above the landscape. They are clear to the naked eye, and they photograph well. At sunset, they become quite beautiful." The image changed. "Here, you see their appearance as the sun goes down - the lettering changes from white to pink, to red, and finally deep indigo. So it has the quality, the feeling, of being a natural element within the natural landscape."
He returned to the original cloud image in daylight. "These letters are generated by a marriage of nanoparticles and genetically modified clostridium perfringens bacteria. The image is, in effect, a nanoswarm, and it will remain visible in the air for a variable period of time, depending on conditions - just as any cloud would. It may appear for only a few minutes. At other times, it may appear for an hour. It may appear in multiples..."
On the screen, the fluffy clouds became the BP slogan, repeated infinitely in cloud after cloud, stretching away to the horizon. "I think everyone will recognize the impact of this new medium. Thenatural medium."
He had expected spontaneous applause for this dramatic visual, but there was still only silence in the darkness. Yet surely they would be experiencing some sort of reaction by now. An infinitely repeated advert hanging in the sky? Surely it must arouse them.
"But these clouds are a special case," he said.
He returned tothe underwater image, fishes moving over the coral reef. "In this case," he said, "signage and adverts are borne by the living creatures themselves, through direct genetic modification of each species. We call this genomic advertising. To capture this new medium, speed is of the utmost importance. There are only a limited number of reef fishes common to tourist waters. Some fish are more incandescent than others. Many are a bit drab. So we want to choose the best. And the genetic modifications will require patenting the marine animal in each case. Thus we will patent the Cadbury clown fish, the British Petroleum stag coral, the Marks and Spencer moray eel, the Royal Bank of Scotland angelfish, and gliding silently overhead, the British Airways manta ray."
Koss cleared his throat. "Speed matters because we are entering a competitive situation. We want our Cadbury clown fish out there, before the clown fish is patented by Hershey's or McDonald's. And we want a strong creature, since in the natural environment the Cadbury clown fish will compete against ordinary clown fish, and hopefully triumph over them. The more successful our patented fish, the more frequently our message shall be seen, and the more completely the original, messageless fish will be driven to extinction. We are entering the era of Darwinian advertising! May the best advert win!"
A coughfrom the audience. "Gavin, forgive me," came a voice, "but this appears to be an environmental nightmare. Brand names on fish? Slogans in clouds? And what else? Rhinos in Africa that carry the Land Rover logo? If you go about branding animal species, every environmentalist in the world will oppose you."
"Actually, they will not," Koss said, "because we're not suggesting that corporationsbrand species. We ask corporations tosponsor species. As a public service." He paused. "Think how many museum exhibitions, theater companies, and symphony orchestras are entirely dependent on corporate sponsorship. Even sections of roadway are sponsored, today. Why shouldn't the same philanthropic spirit be directed toward the natural world - which surely would benefit far more than our roads? Endangered species could be attractively sponsored. Corporations can stake their reputations on the survival of animal species, as they once staked their reputations on the quality of dull television programs. And it is the same for other animals that are not yet endangered. For all the fish in the sea. We are talking about an era of magnificent corporate philanthropy - on a global scale."