ITAP PART 2
• Disruption •In the field of visual advertising, Disruption is key. Disruption is a tool for change, and an agent of growth. As visual communicators, actively thinking ‘outside of the box’ we present a working methodology and life view philosophy. In the world of advertising, Bill Bernbach (who’s approach to graphic advertising revolutionised the design world) is seen as a legend. He said “In advertising, not to be different is virtual suicide” and so far, his theory has practically always been true. This is why huge corporate companies hire creative design teams to work on ad campaigns that appear so simple that people wonder how they didn’t think of it themselves. Or perhaps, are so different that it starts a viral spreading like with the Cadburys Gorilla advert:
Disruption is not to be confused with destruction. It opens up the opportunity for creation by asking questions of the topic. Thus, a designer would be required to question, rather than attempt to forge an answer if he were to go about problem solving. “Disruption is a means of creating something dynamic to replace something that has become static’. By this, it should be interpreted that the role of the communicator is to portray a fresh, different approach to one that was stagnant previously. If an advertising campaign is a paraty like others, then it wont be effective. The only way to be distinctive as a business is to be different, and this requires disruption. “We have to do things we think we can’t do”.
There are 3 distinct domains necessary for success:
- Convention
- Vision
- Disruption
For a successful advert to be spawned there will need to be a good relationship built on trust between client and advertising or design agency. This is fundamental as it gives the agency free realm and the confidence, unrestricted to pursue an ‘out there’ advert or advertising campaign. Historically in the world of design, creative and viral based agencies have always been disrusptive. ‘Me too’ advertising never succeeds long term. This is because it isn’t memorable. A me too advert is the same as other competitors in it’s market. A memorable advert will push the brand in the long run and make future campaigns easier to promote.
this is an advert unlike any that had ever been done before for John West Salmon. It was succesful because it disrupted the advertising environment of fish around it and took a risk with humor, and payed off.
ITAP PART 2
• Hearing what is said •1. Hearing what is said
2. Listening to what is said
3. Interpreting what is said
4. Understanding what is said
5. Listening to what is said again
In this lecture we went over how society often wastes information. We listen to give a response, not to understand what was said. From the video, I gathered that most information we are exposed to is irrelevant in our day to day lives. There was one quote in particular from this lecture that I found extremely interesting. “We don’t think for ourselves, we follow behavioural patterns based on inclusion and exclusion”. It’s funny because I could immediately comprehend this statement and it’s meaning. All across the world we are attempting to fit in, to be a part of something. Rarely are we ever just content with being ourselves. Bruce Lee said “Just being yourself is a hard thing to do”.
Everyday at work people expect me to be courteous, inhibited, dull and robotic in order to “maintain” the companies high standards for customer service. I am an individual, a human being who loves social interaction, and, since the beginning of my first day at school until my current employment job in retail, I am constantly reprimanded for talking. Talking. Out of all things, I have been penalised more often than any other offence for talking to another human being; surely this is one of the most basic and fundamental of human requirements. When I work I am no longer Perry White. I am a temporary actor, hypnotised by the monotony of cashier work and fearful of losing my job.
ITAP PART 2
• Semiotics •“Semiotics is the study of the difference between illusion and reality” – Thomas Sebeoak. Semiotics isn’t merely the observance and study of sounds and symbols around us. This would be contradictory. As visual communicators we need to locate the meaning of a sign by locating the presence of other signs around it. A simple sign like an opened hand has more than one meaning because the other symbols that are applied in the specific context change the meaning. A hand in a red circle would connotes to the viewer that they are being warned, or more simply to stop:
In stark contrast, an opened fist can also imply a state of contentment, or submission. If two people were to argue then one person put their open hand out, depending on the manner in which It was done it could either be seen as aggressive or passive; this situation could be interpreted incorrectly by outsiders. This is why it is important that we show other symbols along with it, or they may be misinterpreted.
Symbols can represent themselves in a variety of different ways; from things as simple as a colour, to things as complex as a corporate logo. The word dog has a symbol inside the word itself. The 3 shapes from each letter ‘D’, ‘O’ and ‘G’. Another interpretive solution to a dog symbol would be an actual image of a dog that is basic and easily recogniseable.
An indexical sign shows us how meaning is formed. In other words it is the communication of a sign that becomes a connection between a sign and its symptoms. For example, Indexical signs indicate the relationship to the thing they correspond to such as smoke to fire:
ITAP PART 2
• Information Design •Information design is the newest of the design disciplines incorporated for use by thousands of companies worldwide. However, in an age when the creation of messages and meanings is so important, information design becomes not only necessary, but fundamentally and vitally needed. Communicators use colour and shape to effectively portray the intended information. They also use typography so that text is not bland and monotonous, shape so that graphs and data comparison sdon’t look repetitive and symbols and images to stop viewers from getting bored of reading text and words.
The reason information design is so important to us now is because it breaks down hard to read, useless, repetitive and dull data, and makes it aesthetically welcoming to the average human eye.
Here is an example of information design, or an infrogram. It represents a “Hierarchy of Digital Distractions”. Here we can tell quite clearly the things that distract an average Westerner surrounded by digital mediums. This is why I like Information design as opposed to older traditional methods of displaying research results, clattering my brain with seemingly useless information, if it isn’t visually appealing I may be oblivious to important information.
Here is a website with a lot of examples of successfully informative and visually appealing information design: http://www.designer-daily.com/information-is-beautiful-30-examples-of-creative-infography-5538
ITAP PART 2
• Design Ethics •Design ethics is what all visual communicators should use when making any project. It is where values and creative design meet in common ground. A designer should not only make his/her work look good, but should also be able to explain, in depth, the value of what it is they are designing. They need to be able to ask and then answer such questions as:
Why it may be beneficial for the client to have this intended work “designed”.
How is this work going to distinguish the client’s business from other competitors?
How can you portray the benefits to the target audience?
As communicators we are intended to relay, present and advertise a message. Therefore, personal opinion should not be taken into account; this is acting amorally. Moral and immoral acts are out of bounds as designers. Designers should be looking to the future, near and far. How will their work affect others such as the consumer market and the companies? Although a designer will work amorally and may not be a direct supportable part of the campaign behind the work, that designer will still need to be able to justify their involvement in it. Thus, every communicator should have an informed stand point behind their work whatever their position on the campaign/issue.
The image above by clothing company ‘Sisley’ uses unethical ideas in this advert. It displays two intoxicated young women or girls that are metaphorically snorting “fashion” in the form of a drug such as cocaine. It also implies that drug use could be considered fashionable as the caption in the middle of the text says “Fashion Junkie”. This could be a bad representation for young girls who idolize these fashion magazines and the brands such as these in general.
ITAP PART 2
• Bill Bernbach •"Rules are what the artist breaks; the memorable never emerged from a formula."
William Bernbach, born August 13, 1911 in New York City was an American advertising creative director. He became one of the three founders in 1949 of the globally recognized advertising agency Doyle Dane Bernbach ( commonly known as DDB). Bernbach was renounded as the inspirational force and perhaps a father figure to some of advertising's most successful talents. His staff including copywriters, artistic directors and writers lived for his approval. His approving end judgement was the desired result from weeks of grafting in creative advertising teams in a style that he had fashioned. Bill Bernbach prepared and designed his artist teamwork concept at Grey Advertising. Doyle Dane Bernbach was blessed with a hard working, low key and dedicated management form that constantly created epic and memorable campaigns. Instead of pushing the ads with cheesy, gimmicky and forceful advertising, Bernbach had taken a different approach that utilized the products assets to society and subtly and simply let the product sell itself.
“Advertising doesn't create a product advantage. It can only convey it.” – William Bernbach
Bernbachs company in 1949 was seen as the creative outsiders, somewhat of an antithesis to what was made popular in the 50’s by companies such as Greay, Y&M and JWT. In the 50’s these were the creative revolutionairies of advertising. DDB were responsible for the infamous VolksWagen ‘Lemon’ ad below:
This advert at first glances appears basic. Which it is. A black and white photo of a Volkswagen, a German car, which at the time would raise a sensitive subject which would surely be hard to sell to the American public. The word ‘Lemon’ below in bold san serif font doesn’t seem fitting to the image and this is the exact realisation that DDB intended for people to see. Underneath the image follows a statement that explains that this particular car was rejected by Volkswagen Inspector Kurt Kroner due to a colour blemish on the glove box. It continues to describe the rigorous inspection process; one out of fifty does not pass for something as simple as a scratch on the windshield. “This preoccupation with detail means the VW lasts longer and requires less maintenance, by and large, than other cars.” Eventually ending with a memorable tag line “We pluck the lemons; you get the plums,”. This gives the viewer the impression that Volkswagen are naming their car a lemon which subtly persuades you to read more, conclusively informing the reader that it is in fact the rigorous inspection process that Volkswagen claim will make their more reliable than others.
ITAP PART 2
• So-Me •So Me is a French Graphic Illustrator. He is was introduced to the world commercial arts scene as the art director for Ed Banger Records, now it seems though that he is on his way to infamy as a rising star in the world of commercial graphic illustration. He has worked alongside artists such as Kanye West, Keri Hilson and Kid Cudi, and for companies such as coke (in a project alongside ‘Justice’). Below:
Aswell as being a solo graphic artist he is also in charge, and the head of direction for the band Justice's music videos DVNO and D.A.N.C.E., as well as Kanye West's Good Life. His art work has transcended across a wide variety of mediums and is visible on flyers, posters and even CD art work. So-me is noted for his unique style that is eye catching, aesthetically interesting, usually colourful and always noteable. So-Me seems to be a master at distorting and re-arranging hand written text into artistically and flexibilly shaped typography that is juxtaposed with carton illustration and shapes. Notably, a lot of So Me’s artistic pursuit are recognized as being full of information, however never “cluttered”. This is a skill that a lot of artists or designers have failed to conquer with such ease as So Me, who even did an exhibition with work that took him in total of under 12 hours to complete. Whether one leans towards liking So Me’s art or disliking it, it doesn’t take away from the fact that it is undeniably interesting.
The Visual Hierarchy in the image below is a good example of how exuberant and vibrant artistic work can be presented, but still follow laws of the hierarchy. For example, the title here is placed above the illustrated image which informs the viewer that it is a title. The colour of the title typeface is also varying, and it differs from the informative information below, and to the side which is in white. Other less important information but requirements are listed below and in the middle of the entire design.
The audience that a piece of work like this would be young, rock fans who want to have a loud, wreckless and fun night. We can see here that So Me has taken all specifics into account. If this were for a younger market, perhaps the design wouldn’t feature a tattooed woman, and a female hand holding her. It would probably be more colourful as the black and white contrast in this represents a genre of death metal, heavy metal and rock and roll music.
WEEK 5
• Character Design •Character design is part of the pre-productive part of story creating. There are 4 aspects that need to be considered during the process of creating a character. They are as follows:
Protagonist – Most often the main character. Experiences conflict, trials, tribulations and challenges throughout the story. This character doesn’t necessarily have to be good but usually is.
Antagonist – Usually the “bad guy” in a story, the cause of the conflict. However, this character doesn’t necessarily have to be a person. It can be a force (an army or government), a natural force like a natural disaster, even a supernatural energy for example.
Dialogue - These are the words a character will use in conversation throughout the story. How does this character talk? Is it straight forward, comedic, soft spoken? Perhaps a man of few words who speaks backwards like George Lucas’ Yoda from Star Wars. His approach to speech and is different and insightful; this implies to the audience that Yoda is knowledgeable .
Stereotype – Generally, stereotypes are used in all stories. Usually the character is over simplified, basic according to his/her surroundings and lacks any thorough odd aspects to their personality, this would sap from the forthcoming adventures that the character is about to embark on. A lot of the time, the character discovers a power or “inner strength” that they never knew existed, this is never played upon before the character begins any endeavours in the story.
• Hero’s Journey •
Joseph Campbell was a writer who used the term monomyth to describe the general “hero’s journey”. Typically, Campbell describes the monomyth as a group of common story elements. They are as follows:
Departure
Call to adventure
Refusal of the call
Supernatural aid
Crossing the 1st threshold
Belly of the whale
Initiation
The road of trials
The meeting with the Goddess
Temptation away from the true path
Atonement with the father
Apotheosis (becoming god-like)
The ultimate boon (big bang)
Return
Refusal of the return
The magic flight
Rescue from without
Crossing the return threshold (2nd)
Master of the 2 worlds
Here is the Monomyth plot from The Matrix:
- Departure - Neo's departure and initial refusal to what is presented to him
- Initiation - Neo meets Trinity (Goddess) and experiences apotheosis when he is given the choice red pill or blue pill (return to normality or become supernatural)
- Return - Neo faces many challenges with his new found abilities, becomes a master of 2 worlds and has freedom to live after facing his challenges.
WEEK 4
• Reflective Visual Journal •The reflective visual journal is an indespensible tool for visual creatives. It is a weapon that when utilised properly and efficiently can form the foundation of great pieces of art. Legendary artists such as Picasso used their diaries and visual journals to great use. “I begin with an idea and then it becomes something else”. It is a secure place for those working in visual fields to test their creative influences and put them to paper, without becoming embarassed, and thus, precious with their attempts. This is because the RVJ is important for processing final outcomes, not the outcome itself. A visual communicator will experiment in their RVJ by collecting, organising, developing, editing, refining and evaluating visual information. The Reflective Visual Journal will give a visual practicioner the chance to learn, and by this act, gain knowledge. It should not just show the practicioner information, the process around acquiring the information is more important than the final outcome.
“A portable laboratory for the development of visual thinking”.
Below are examples of RVJ work from a conceptual illustrator's blog I found when browsing the net.
Design Process with written annotations:
Final Outcome:
Drawing
A visual communicator’s rvj should be filled with drawings. Not extremely detailed designs or portraits however, but simple thumbnail sketches that allow the practicioner to communicate their thoughts. Drawing should be an outlet, a channel for one’s creative storage after a given amount of time. It should also be used during the embracing of all of the creative influences around us from day to day. Drawing into a Reflective Visual Journal gets ideas out of one’s mind so they have an opportunity to develop without anticipation. Leonardo Da Vinci called it “thinking on the page”, some call it thinking out loud. During the flowing drawing process into the journal, it is important to suspend habitual critical judgement. This requires one to let their guard down, consider less preciousness about their drawings and to halt harsh self judgement. Work inside a Reflective Visual Journal is the development, and process stages of a piece; drawing for ideas and not for “art”. With this knowledge a visual practitioner should be able to make mistakes without embarrassment, thus, discover unique and challenging pathways developed all by process. It is important to understand that a Visual Communicator can use other materials other than pencil and paper for their drawing processes inside their RVJ. Other media and materials may be more suitable for expressing specific statements or attempting to solve specific problems. For example, if an illustrator was experimenting with screen prints and a client required a background that looked like carpet material, one may find cuttings of different types of material in their journal. They may also find etchings, screen prints of how different textures look, even lino mono prints and painted drawings, or brush pen drawings.
Brain
A visual communicator should be able to use their creative brain often. Both halves of the brain have different functions, for explanation purposes we can pretend that we have two brains.
The left brain is used by humans for organising, clarifying, managing and time keeping; overall logic.
The right brain is used when playing, experimenting, risking, when curious, and when being creative.
It is important to understand that no side of the brain is more important than the other, and that without access to one half day to day activities and tasks would become much harder. The left and right halves of the brain intertwine when in the creative processes of visual work making. The left brain analyses and the right brain experiments. This system is how a visual communicator should attempt to work in their RVJ. As communicators we should be consciously switching brain modes from right to left. Between spontaneity and focus. Between experimentation and analysis. It is also important to know that these expressive and experimental drawings should not just be random conundrums and doodles. They need a theme, a pathway, a direction that can be gained through the early parts of analysis and annotation (using the left half of our brain, this is logic). Afterwards, one should open their “right brain” to explore the theme they have reached, progress on it and briefly halting to reflect on their creative outgoings by questioning and reasoning between themselves, and their work inside the Reflective Visual Journal.
WEEK 3
• Visual Hierarchy •
Visual Hierarchy is useful for a Graphic Communicator. It allows them to structure out the design process of the entire piece pre-creation. This is important because it aids the designer’s judgment with what could otherwise look like a cluttered page for example. Not only is Visual Hierarchy important for the artist, it is also, more so important to the public, or client… The target audience. In the lecture we looked at newspapers such as ‘The Times’ for example, the bold, formal, professional text at the top of the page could possibly be the first visual aspect at the top of the hierarchy. However, the size and content of the picture below this text is immediately eye catching. Purposely, the newspaper want to sell copies for their headlining story, therefore the picture will be enlarged by the designer for it to take the position of top of the hierarchy. Where images and photos are not so self-explanatory the use of text will become vital. The text will take the position at the top of the visual hierarchy and be bold, and attention grabbing. Likewise, if there is an image that is self-explanatory then text may not be necessary. In some situations such as the anti-smoking pregnant advert shown in lecture, the text could just be minimized to still add information that could be useful to a concerned or interested party, but it is far down in the Visual Hierarchy. Other design devices that create visual hierarchy are the specific typography; is it subtle, thin, bold, and what is it’s tone of voice? Also, colour; how much black text is necessary on the white background to make it appear bold enough to grab your attention? Why use a blue banner at the bottom, when yellow will come across as a warning colour and may grab the audiences attention more easily.
• Tone of Voice •
In Graphic Communication, tone of voice is important as it sets the basis of the entire piece of work as a whole before the reader looks deeply into any smaller visual aspects. For example, a poster advertising a children’s swimming class called “splash” would have a target audience of young people, to invite them to want to swim, and also to make them feel comfortable and happy around a swimming pool environment. This means therefore, the colours of the logo will be soft, neutral colours like light blue (for boy and girl). The play on the word itself “splash” has been used in the example below, the designer illustrated water to be rising up from behind the word splash, doing exactly what the word says itself. A matching colour of the text (yellow and blue) on the fish sets the tone off. The text is chunky but not forceful, it is playful, loud, gimmicky and fun. It is not bland, purposely; it suits children. Bold texts are useful however, sometimes if the piece of work is not being already occupied by a big or forceful image, or perhaps the designer may use both to set a specific tone, a clear, bold statement of aggressiveness interlinked with tastiness; We see this in the Lion Bar.
In Graphic Communication, tone of voice is important as it sets the basis of the entire piece of work as a whole before the reader looks deeply into any smaller visual aspects. For example, a poster advertising a children’s swimming class called “splash” would have a target audience of young people, to invite them to want to swim, and also to make them feel comfortable and happy around a swimming pool environment. This means therefore, the colours of the logo will be soft, neutral colours like light blue (for boy and girl). The play on the word itself “splash” has been used in the example below, the designer illustrated water to be rising up from behind the word splash, doing exactly what the word says itself. A matching colour of the text (yellow and blue) on the fish sets the tone off. The text is chunky but not forceful, it is playful, loud, gimmicky and fun. It is not bland, purposely; it suits children. Bold texts are useful however, sometimes if the piece of work is not being already occupied by a big or forceful image, or perhaps the designer may use both to set a specific tone, a clear, bold statement of aggressiveness interlinked with tastiness; We see this in the Lion Bar.
WEEK 2
"• An understanding and knowledge of ‘an audience’ can enhance and focus the communication •What is the role of the audience? An understanding of the audience can enhance the focus and communication of a specific work. With graphic communication, this may require a lot of thorough research. A designer usually is required to solve a problem visually, to portray a message graphically, this means that the designer must ensure he/she has done enough preparation for their message to be portrayed and hit the audience with information, or persuasion. However, a communicator cannot just simply throw information at any audience. They must narrow down their target audience. In the lecture we were shown British Airline Sky Flyers design ideas and how they were all colourful, playful and cartoon, directly aimed at children who’s main concern is supposed to be having fun. Not all of the audience target groups are for commercial and selling purposes. Some are for social and human rights purposes, such as campaigns. In the lecture we were also shown images of illustrative designs and a final outcome on an advert for bullying. The image is colourful and soft visually but the overall message highlights bullying, it is attention grabbing to more than one peer group (children and parents) which is powerful. The soft colours of the picture make it “non-scary” however the anti-bullying message is still potent.
• The notion of ‘inspiration’ derives from constant inquiry, based on research, observation, recording and experimentation •
As a graphic designer, one should be constantly asking questions about the environment around themselves. Questions should spawn new questions and the designer should be constantly documenting his/her observations from the world around them. In this instance a sketchbook is useful as a designer can sketch down any interesting sightings they have noticed; from day-to-day travels to expeditionary endeavours around the world. Alongside the more obvious arsenal of a visual communicator, a graphic designer may require to observe more specific media around themselves such as leaflets. The inspiration gathered from general human interaction (viral communication) and actual graphic advertising is powerful. As this is the graphic designer’s field, they should be constantly collecting and observing leaflets, flyers, posters, adverts, symbols and logos to gain constant creative inspiration, effectively the visual consumption of other works of artistic advertising could help the designer solve future problems they may encounter.
However, as well as being an art based subject, artists can also use more commonly used, traditional market research.
Primary research – Researcher has to find information from scratch. This would require the researcher to do surveys, questionnaires, polls, interviews, even experimenting and documentation of the experiment process to help gain understanding.
Secondary Research – Researcher uses information that is already available. Such as online information from the web, books, magazines and leaflets with information on. Collectives in general may be handy as they give specific information and advertising on specific subjects that may be of particular interest to the designer.
As a graphic designer, one should be constantly asking questions about the environment around themselves. Questions should spawn new questions and the designer should be constantly documenting his/her observations from the world around them. In this instance a sketchbook is useful as a designer can sketch down any interesting sightings they have noticed; from day-to-day travels to expeditionary endeavours around the world. Alongside the more obvious arsenal of a visual communicator, a graphic designer may require to observe more specific media around themselves such as leaflets. The inspiration gathered from general human interaction (viral communication) and actual graphic advertising is powerful. As this is the graphic designer’s field, they should be constantly collecting and observing leaflets, flyers, posters, adverts, symbols and logos to gain constant creative inspiration, effectively the visual consumption of other works of artistic advertising could help the designer solve future problems they may encounter.
However, as well as being an art based subject, artists can also use more commonly used, traditional market research.
Primary research – Researcher has to find information from scratch. This would require the researcher to do surveys, questionnaires, polls, interviews, even experimenting and documentation of the experiment process to help gain understanding.
Secondary Research – Researcher uses information that is already available. Such as online information from the web, books, magazines and leaflets with information on. Collectives in general may be handy as they give specific information and advertising on specific subjects that may be of particular interest to the designer.
WEEK 1
• Key Principles - The Notions of Originality •The term “originality” is a delicate subject for an artist to conquer; as usually all works of art have an underlying influence, either directly or indirectly. Often, these influences prompt us to create a pre-meditated outcome of work that may look directly similar to the outside influence, however, artwork may still be expressive with use of an exterior influence; which prompted the artist’s decision to create the given piece. For hundreds of years amazing works of art have been known for their unique qualities of singularity, when in essence they are not the product of solitary creation; more so the blend of different sources which influence many years of thinking in general. This enhances one’s use of creative energy Originality is rare, thus important that an artist/ designer references their influences of their work. . Recent examples are all around the audience, in the lecture we were shown images of Andy Warhol’s monumental high contrast reprint’s of Marilyn Monroe and shown a similar, more “modern” recreation by Matteo Bertolio (2004). Despite taking a different approach to the production of the piece, it is clear who Bertolio has taken the idea from.
• Key Principles - Recontextualised Ideas •
Recontextualised works can become contemporary. They may not appear immediately to the eye as a contemporary, original idea, but if the audience looks at the style of the work, they may notice bold similarities to those of hundreds, if not thousands of years ago.; the only difference being modernised use of materials, modern scenery and an overall general message perhaps, that reaches out to a social and cultural current target of today. In the lecture we looked at examples such as Lucas Cranach’s ‘Adam and Eve’ painting from the 14th century. We were then shown an image of a 1980’s remake in a cubist-esque style. Finally, we were shown a 2009 catalogue which featured a male and a female model’s photo who pose in similar fashion to the 1520’s painting, however the overall modern aura of the photo (clear crisp contrast of photo, use of vibrant colour, common looking models of today) shows us it is intentionally up-to-date and current and not just a bad attempt at a classic remake.
