First wink, then Big...

Big Magazine is following in the footsteps of other magazines, like wallpaper* - and opened an ad agency. Who's next? Playboy? They could do the cheap beer ads. Or maybe they do? Kidding of course - Big has some big names with them. Click the read more.

The magazine has launched a new agency called Congress, headed by creative
director John Wolfington. "It's an attempt to broker the talent that's seen in Big," he says. "The
magazine has got a 10-year history now. If you look at the list of past contributors,
itˆs filled with talented people and lots of new people coming into photography.

"Essentially, we are attempting to unite the kind of different creative people that work within the sphere of
the magazine, from photographers to art directors and pursue commercial projects."

Congress can offer a creative team made up of any of the 500 international contributors to Big Magazine to work on commercial projects such as advertising campaigns and editorial work, says Wolfington. Instead of going to an ad agency and having to work with a particular art department, Congress is "more like a network," he explains. "We talk to people about the projects. We have a keen sense of who's good for certain things. We're looking to carry over the reputation and level of quality that's represented in the magazine Big."

For now, possible clients are fashion, technology companies and consumer electronics. Wolfington
runs Congress out of the New York office of Big. He formerly worked with Big publisher Marcelo Jánemann on Issue 30 the one on Youth: American Style that featured such photographers as Mario Sorrenti, Terry Richardson, Mikako, Stefan Ruiz, Susanna Howe and Justine Kurland.

"Strong imagery is really the trademark of Big and our strength, and that's appealing to companies,"
Wolfington says. The former freelancer with Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners and Lloyd & Co. also spent three years in the creative department of Donna Karan New York.