Spanish advertising agency Publics has recreated the houses of the TV series through thousands of IKEA’s products as part of the Real Life Series campaign. Giant Swedish brand enlisted Publicis Spain to create a set of three displays, modeled after the living rooms of cult classics ‘The Simpsons,’ ‘Friends’ and ‘Stranger Things’, in order to capture the cultural imaginations of consumers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The print ads comprise actual furniture from the store’s inventory, which was modeled and edited using 3D software for a hyper-realistic aesthetic.
Above, the Stranger Things’ living room and with the iconic Christmas light bulbs that glow with the energy of a scared son lost in the upside down. Below a render of, the Simpsons’ couch stares back at you in all its surreal meta-glory. In classic catalog style, IKEA imposes the names and prices of each item.
The campaign shows you can buy Monica Geller’s coffee table – or ‘Lack’ – for just $95, or a set of Joyce Byers’s candles – ‘Fenomen’ – for $29.
The project, named ‘Real Life Series,’ will come to life on Ikea’s social media channels and catalogs. The brand has also launched a website that offers decorating inspiration so that customers can source the exact iconic pieces they’re looking for, such as Lattjo, which doubles as the rug found in the Simpsons’ living room.
“The Ikea team worked closely with the creatives for months. They went through hundreds of items to find the perfect pieces that would bring those iconic rooms,” says Vinod Jayan, managing director for IKEA in the UAE, Qatar, Egypt and Oman. “It was a great collaborative effort that led up to a stunning result. A true testament of what IKEA represents: a place where everyone can bring whatever idea they see or have to life.”