*notcot in playful , 10:15

Puma Penguin Army Arrives- 12.17.09

penguin0.jpg They’re heeeeeeere!!! Meet the Puma Penguin Army that arrived yesterday. Sorry i lost a few hours of my day yesterday to unpacking the fort of 20 massive boxes that showed up. And then carefully pulling out each of its foamy filled box… only a few casualties. 1 poor orange guy totally shattered (we’ll consider him a sacrifice in the name of science to see what’s inside a Puma Penguin)… one green guy lost a foot (don’t worry he’s being superglued as you read)… another orange guy has a special sunburst like color fade with a cracked neck (watching him carefully to make sure not to snap his head off!).

Need a little background story? Haven’t walked by a Puma store this season? Well Puma’s window and instore displays internationally have these incredible life size plastic penguins around. And they are simple beautifully designed glossy little statues. For those of you who , you know I’ve been obsessing over them since Stockholm. And then every time i walk past the Santa Monica store. They are truly one of the awesomest window displays i’ve ever seen. Awesome enough that i couldn’t help reaching out to Puma in hopes of telling their story and begging to buy one. And then 20 showed up.

PUMA - i just have to say, you guys are amazing. Like, best christmas present ever amazing. THANK YOU! Now that being said ~ go see the many photos of where i first spotted these guys, how they arrived, and just how fun they are en masse. Now the question is, what to do with them???

To start from the beginning ~ i first fell for these guys in Stockholm walking past a Puma Store window… stockholm.jpg

Then back in Santa Monica, i couldn’t help taking pics of them when my friend was shoe shopping… it was here that i first poked at it and picked one up even. santamonica1.jpg

… too cool with the sunglasses. santamonica2.jpg

Somewhere in between here, i started begging Puma to figure out how to get a penguin or two ~ couldn’t possibly let these awesomely cool window displays go to waste! They are so beautifully designed!!! It was then that i found out they were plastic! Initially i even wondered if they might be lacquered wooden penguins. Apparently there are about 2700 of these guys around the world…

Then two days ago, walking past the Santa Monica store again ~ noticed the displays changed… santamonica3.jpg

And then yesterday… 20 giant boxes arrived. penguin1.jpg

penguin2.jpg

In each box is a penguin!!!!!!!! penguin3.jpg

And you know me, i couldn’t help but line them all up and take lots of pics… penguin4.jpg

… rearrange them all, and take more pics… (really, i think i’m finally understanding the need for a photo assistant, it takes a lot of time and energy to move 20 penguins around! I can’t even imagine trying to make a stop action video with them all… yet.) penguin5.jpg

penguin6.jpg

penguin7.jpg

penguin8.jpg

penguin9.jpg

penguin10.jpg

penguin11.jpg

So remember that giant 3L Veuve Clicquot Yellowboam? Well the size and color of the orange penguins was so close i couldn’t resist posing them together… also stuck one of the broken feet with the bottle… (then photoshopped a second one for symmetry!) penguin12.jpg

Ok here’s the sad more scientific part… these are the two broken penguins! And the crazy plasticy-ness smelled like marzipan. I kid you not. Yes, it could be toxic to ingest, no i didn’t taste it! penguin13.jpg

So for those with a morbid or product design curiosity ~ here’s what’s inside! penguin14.jpg

And don’t worry the green one is being saved! Super glue to the rescue! penguin15.jpg

And here’s the hardest part ~ what to do with all of these penguins? We certainly need to keep a few as NOTCOT mascots around the office, so tempted to drive around with a few in my car for spontaneous photoshoots in unexpected locations… Other ideas that have come up ~ find artists who love them as much as i do and let them go to town on them ~ take them to a car paint shop and lets get them some crazy new glossy paint jobs ~ have them travel the world (though i’m worried about shipping them back and forth too much after some barely survived) ~ so, i’m open to thoughts, suggestions, ideas ~ help!

And i don’t think i can say thank you enough ~ Puma, you have blown my mind. It will be pretty hard for another delivery to get me as giddy as this one!

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64 Notes

Hello, amazing. I have been looking for thèse for soo long, I saw them as well at puma and asked about where to get them if possible, but got a negative response in the store…..I would love to have one or to so that the other news is not lonely, do you think puma still has some or did they all ship them to you?:-)

----- keizerpenguin 22.10.13 13:36

I want to customize one!

----- Jazz 15.08.12 11:18

what a memory those penguins at your place.

if you’ve still one, i’m now ready to adopt him. no matter the color, they are all white inside ;-)

----- Vinciane 21.04.12 08:58

I am so willing to buy a purple penguin from u, if u so happen to have any left or any other color!

----- RavenAlexandra 24.02.12 21:35

I’ve tried so hard to get a few of these could yu PM me your contact at Puma as I’ve had no luck and I really really really really need a penguin!!!!

----- Morley dave 18.12.11 02:36

I also just discovered these penguins, in Glasgow. It was the only thing in the store I wanted to buy. I tried to bribe the staff member with cash. Offered money to charity. Nothing worked. I was nearly tempted to shoplift for the first time ever. “Calling all units he has a penguin, repeat he has a penguin - over”. If you have any left…

----- Tim 27.01.11 14:41

Those penguins are absolutely adorable! I never even knew they existed, which is surprising because i’m absolutely obsessed with penguins. I really like the picture of the penguins in a line but the blue penguin is in focus and at a slightly different angle.

----- Cat G. 04.10.10 07:27

My friend has requested a yellow penguin at her wedding this summer. IS there any way you could help me make that happen? The penguin could be a wedding crasher……

----- Lirpa 19.04.10 20:00

OH MY GOSH I WOULD ADORE A PENGUIN! Let me know if you ever feel like giving one away!

----- Melissa 25.02.10 20:14

love the penguins. would be interesting if you sent, sayyyy 15 of them, to different tastemakers/creatives with a disposable camera. Ask each to photonarrate a tale with the penquin. no rules on story - just that the penguin has to be in at least one shot. ? You could blog your favorites.

----- Lauren 21.02.10 19:22

I have an orange one… his name is Pepe. If you visit my blog, I have a couple of photos on there, but I’m committed to at least one new picture a month with my little buddy.

Will be much more careful with him now that I know that he’s hollow and fragile… Yikes!

----- James 01.02.10 15:26

It would be great to have one! I’m totally in love with penguins!. These looks awesome man!

----- SHAN 27.01.10 08:43

If you have any of those Penguins left, I would be forever indebted to you if you would sell 2 of them to me…I’ll give you $100 a pop for them. I have been harrassing the heck out of PUMA to no avail, so I fear that you may be my last hope…

----- Rigel 15.01.10 19:38

I wish I had a Puma Penguin. They are totally adorable!

----- maria 11.01.10 13:38

I could make a ideal session with any of them in Ukraine - imagine - this lovely birds can fly to far far away here )) could Puma or you send me 2-3 units to make a session in Ukraine in 3-4 cities?

----- Alex 10.01.10 04:56

I live in Hanoi. I could definitely take some interesting photos with the yellow penguin!

----- Hannah 09.01.10 17:40

He revolves, over the heaarts of my pupils to walk with me, in attempting to attend simultaneously to a great influence on hte day pleasantly and happily without thee.

----- Rodolfo 09.01.10 17:05

If you happen to have any of the little guys going spare still I would love to rehome one.

I am currently saving my pennies to go and volunteer with the research dept on Phillip Island in Australia. Phillip Island is home to a large colony of little penguins who have charmed me so much that I want to travel across the world to work with them.

Also I am not allowed any pets where I live, but I think a brightly coloured penguin could possibly make up for this!

----- Laura 08.01.10 03:46

oh please please pretty please send one in Bucharest! I got here the first Theosaurus in Romania, so they could make a pretty nice team of porcelain vs. plastic in a painter studio. okok, i’ll make sure that my cat gets the right idea of what a good behaviour should be :)

----- irina 07.01.10 13:19

They look super cool, great photo of them lined up against your wall, like a little army. It would be great to photograph them with other animals checking them out. If you sprinkled some nuts and seeds around their feet and put one in a park near us they would be surrounded by squirrels in seconds! If you decide to send them to readers I would love one : )

----- Angel 25.12.09 04:19

send me one!!

----- MB 21.12.09 17:43

Oh, how sweet) I want one of these!

----- neizmen 21.12.09 11:01

I have to say, I really like your office and its settings. Very pleasant place to work!

----- Liam Zhu 20.12.09 19:24

These are magical. What an awesome gesture from Puma! I think paint jobs on some of them would be amazing!!! pin-stripes, gold flakes, rainbow flakes OH!!! there’s the thermal paint!! it’s incredible! you could probably write the company and i’m sure they would even send you their product as a gift as well granted you show how it was used, it comes in black and blue and it turns clear when the temperature goes up. but you can layer colors under the thermal layer so whenever you run heat over it it changes to that color. it’s incredible! and very fast, i’ve seen videos done with sinks and bathtubs, helmets, cars, and a mouse for a computer. i’m thinking of getting my bike done or using it for one of my pieces in a gallery.

http://www.alsacorp.com/products/eclipse/eclipse_vid.htm

here’s a link for seeing how fast it reacts. i’m sure there are other companies out there that may have other colors.
OR! you could hold some design contests from your readers to design a penguin?

----- nikki 20.12.09 16:25

I need one so I can TIE DYE him!!! Would that be too cool or what!!!

The animal donation idea is a great one too :)

Meg

----- Megan 19.12.09 12:04

oh, and I really like the idea about auctioning or donating them for an animal-related nonprofit, zoo, preservation group, or the like.

----- charlie 18.12.09 23:00

re: John Cross

By that logic, the Cracking Art Group was totally ripping off Sandy Skoglund and her Radioactive Cats, created 15 years earlier. The only point here: semi-realistic, monochromatic animals are fun. Fluorescent animals existed long before the 90’s and will continue to be used in art, advertising, and design for many years to come.

----- charlie 18.12.09 22:57

OMG!!! I have been trying to figure out how to get my hands on these awesome little guys for months now!!!!!! Good for you for scoring a whole shipment of them - they are freakin sweet!!! So cool that PUMA hooked you up!

----- Rigel 18.12.09 19:14

Those are fantastic. I would love to have a blue one to incorporate into a larger art project.

----- Justin Bowers 18.12.09 11:37

Unlike your other readers, I would send them back!
They’re a total rip off of the great the work Cracking Art Group did in the mid-90’s with penguins. Another example of the commercial space branding j10 year old art as their own “fresh” idea. By fueling the hype, your just perpetuating that practice!

----- John Cross 18.12.09 10:28

I think selling a few and donating the profits to a charity for penguins and/or other animals would be a wonderful idea. I would definitely purchase one.

----- Nancy 18.12.09 10:03

I have been obsessed with these! I love them!

Send me one :)

----- Megan Ashley 18.12.09 09:03

SEND ME ONE
that would just be to fun to paint

----- Philip q 18.12.09 08:37

I like the idea of artist’s painting them, but maybe they could be passed around from artist friend to artist friend and every artist adds a new layer or section, and every time someone updates a penguin they send pics back to you, and in a year you give us an update. They are so cute!

----- Bekka 18.12.09 08:00

those are absolutely awesome… i would love to buy one from you… is there any possibility? have fun with them!

----- Carla 18.12.09 07:53

Okay I’m thinking a crazy stop motion video spelling out NOTCOT marching band style. then march them out the door and into weird crazy places. Then send a couple out to people who will do the same. Collect the videos and make a complete awsome NOTCOT youtube movie,and just to say thanks to puma do something cool to recognize them.

----- Erik 18.12.09 02:45

it’s nice and cold here in my home land.if you wish to give one of those awesome penguins away, i’ll trade it for top secret intel about they’r plans to take over Canada.


i’m guessing they would also look realy nice hanging on a giant christmas tree or on my lawn insted of the old gnomes!*

----- joaquim 18.12.09 00:35

LOVE these little guys! The colours (hey, I’m Canadian, it’s how we spell it here) look so great all lined up!

Here is an idea - why don’t you have people bid on them when you are done with them (e-bay styles maybe) and donate the money somewhere (ie. wildlife charity, salvation army, daily bread food bank!) - Just a suggestion from a neighbor to the north.

Happy Holidays,
Jess

----- Jess Anderson - Canada! 17.12.09 22:06

I agree, send them to artists to custom, like me!

----- M Tan 17.12.09 20:46

Oh my goodness, this is the “Oh Shiney!” gone penguin for sure.
That’s one of the best darn penguin stories I’ve heard in a long time - always follow the theory - never hurts to ask! Congrats!

Idea for you… If you are interested in sharing your collection I own Nothing But Penguins and am positive there are a few folks that would love to not only read your story but have a chance at owning one of these beauts! If there is any way one my happen my way for a photo opp with my own traveling penguin and then on to a lucky penguin loving person… I’d love to brainstorm the idea with you! (I dont want to spam your page with links, so I’ll share domains later if you’re interested)

Yay for penguin parades!

----- jgoode 17.12.09 20:22

I think you need to send them out to artists and do a Puma Collab Custom show!

----- Brigitte 17.12.09 17:13

I need one of these please, please, please, please, please.

I’m an Art Director, been making video games for years, a penguin would fit perfectly in my office/studio. I promise to treat it well, dress it up from time to time, possibly change its look per the holiday, season, time of the year, and share images with you of each new look.

I’ve already started crocheting it a cape, and will start felting it a hat shortly. Please let me raise one of these, I will treat it well.

----- B Chambers 17.12.09 16:56

You have the COOLEST JOB EVER!!!!!!! :D

----- Jennifer 17.12.09 16:36

leave them around so cal- photograph/geotag/map their locations somehow? send your loyal/greedy readers on a scavenger hunt to track one down!

----- Colleen 17.12.09 15:10

I’m an artist, and would love to customize one! If you’re gracious enough to let one go, I’d love one. Otherwise, do enjoy them!!

----- Catherine Cruz Kositanont 17.12.09 15:08

Hi NOTCOT.
Could I please please please have one of these. Im jus a design student with grand ideas and a camera from the UK. I would love to photograph one or some of these. I’ll even send them back to somebody else can have them as a gift.
p.s PLEASE!

----- Willy Harris 17.12.09 15:00

Well there’s a good chance I’ll be going away to college and I could use some company so if you find yourself with one too many penguins I could take good care of him/her, maybe send some updates.

----- Mac 17.12.09 14:54

send us some!

----- Andy! 17.12.09 14:16

I would love to use them to make a stop motion film. I would put shutter shades on them, scarves, flip flops. One could be an indie hipster. One could be a gangster. I am storyboarding this in my head right now. Check out my last stop motion film :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMthXcz6-ho
I would shoot them on the beach, in the snow. Never mind. Now I want to make a skateboarding movie with just penguins…

----- Toni 17.12.09 13:58

I agree with the idea of sending a few to artists for custom paint jobs. I suggest that you drill a hole in the bottom of one and fill it with “Great Stuff” foam, that should help protect it in transit. :) Also for suggesting this awesome idea I should be one of the lucky ones who get to take a stab at painting one.

----- Steeeven 17.12.09 13:56

I love the first photo of the Puma army judging you for wearing Converse kicks! Too funny.

----- Jesse Daniels 17.12.09 13:33

I absolutely love these penguins! I am a photographer and would make a blog dedicated to the travels of one of these penguins! What you think?

----- Daniel Brelsford 17.12.09 13:19

get some artists to make designs for them - then auction them off for some kind of charity. maybe save the penguins or polar bears or something of the like.

----- so... 17.12.09 13:12

Those are SO AMAZING! I say give some away to your followers, and I love the idea of giving them to some artists to do with them what they will and then show the results, TOO FUN!

----- Danielle 17.12.09 13:04

What BMW did with their Art Cars (http://www.bmwdrives.com/bmw-artcars.php) you should do with the penguins. I’ve seen such a number of great illustrators and designers here and on .org that I’d love to see a monthly series or an exhibition co-sponsored by PUMA.

Justsayin.

----- Brian Peter 17.12.09 12:48

AHHHH I have wanted one of these penguins for soo long! Send one my way or Ill be glad to do a stop motion with them and return them… maybe….

----- Dana 17.12.09 12:28

I want one!!! Please??? Pretty please??? can I? please?

----- Gabriela Oliva 17.12.09 12:27

i think sending a few out would be fun. maybe have them travel, amelie gnome style. artist series might be awesome as well. maybe you can organize a show at nucleus where the theme would be penguins and you could use them as mascots to the show. maybe a couple could be door prizes. they’re so cute!

----- thuy 17.12.09 12:12

Those are awesome!!! And they’re so cheery looking. Would love to see what would happen if they sent them out for an artist series collaboration.

----- Tamara 17.12.09 12:05

Kudos to Puma!! How awesome is THAT?! (Also, very smart because people like me will remember this and support them.) I’m resisting the urge (just barely) to start stalking local Puma shops here now….

----- Ms. Pants 17.12.09 11:13

I agree, you should send a few out to your readers! Although I must admit, I’m not sure if I’d paint it into a wonderful work of art, or leave it in all its glory. I especially like the turquoise!

Also, I haven’t been able to find the Kraken Rum anywhere! Any suggestions?

----- Kristina 17.12.09 11:09

Send me one! After-all penguins have such a history with me that when I got married, my wife and I changed our last name to Penguino! We collect and have dozens of plush penguins, but we are always looking for cooler and different additions to our collection.

----- Roger Penguino 17.12.09 10:53

OMG I’m dying!!!! That’s so freaking awesome!!!!!

----- sarah yates 17.12.09 10:39

I say send some to your loyal readers! Like me! I’d Love one of the orange ones!

----- Mark 17.12.09 10:30


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