Have a nice break!

These Bounty advertisements are creative and effective. They've very subtly shown their product in each ad, within an environment that you'd likely be using it in.  It's interesting that they have not included any people in the pictures. I think it's a good choice, as to isolate the focus, but it's certainly not a common sight! Immediately upon viewing these advertisements, I think clever and fun. I'm not going anywhere warm for break, but I hope some of you are!

Communication Arts Advertising Annual, 2010

identity

 

These designs were done by the Bartok group

I decided to post these examples this week because I feel that they are very relevant to what we're doing in class.  Above, you can see that the brochure and website are well integrated by design.  The same color palette, pictures, and typographic treatment can be found in each design.  This helps make the brand recognizable and characteristic. I really like how they've balanced the warm red with the earthy green.  They've managed to use "Christmas" colors without conveying the holiday whatsoever!

Mindfulness...

 

This advertisement was featured as Lurzer's Archive's 2010- 42nd web pick of the week. I like it because of its shock value.  Immediately, the image makes you wonder what it is that's being sold to you. Even though doll heads are prominently featured, there is a strong suggestion that they are not the product. It's interesting that the website is based in the UK because It makes me wonder what kind of cultural symbolism and connotation they attach to doll heads.  In the US, I think that many people may label this ad as "creepy," because dolls are associated with horror stories in some cases.  I like the ad, though, and think it definitely stems from a creative concept.

ironic beauty

Worm Wood, John Jennings, found in FINDINGS: artifacts by John Jennings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I find a strange beauty in this piece even though the subject isn't one of Jennings' most attractive characters.    My eyes enjoy resting on the gradient and I love how it is carried throughout the man's skin.  The red is very powerful and brings focus to the man's hand, which holds a cigarette.   The line work exemplifies Jennings' stylistic approach to much of his work, and keeps one's eyes moving around the piece.   The grungy texture also adds a nice element of unification to the design.

I recommend you touch it

 

I found this advertisement inside of the Communication Arts 2010 Advertising Annual.  It fascinated me  more than much of what I found inside of the rest of the issue.  A scan really doesn't do this image justice because of the physical presence you find in the jeweled areas.  Initially, one would think that this advertisement was for jewelry, but as you can see, the company is actually a paper manufacturer.  The paper used in this advertisement was some of the most wonderful paper I've encountered.  It sparkled with any slight movement and had a rough, glittery texture.  Luckily, It didn't leave your hands sparkling the way glitter normally does.  I like this method of accentuation and contrast. 

Fierce

Hugh Syme - Workbook 32

I'm guessing that this illustration is simply for personal promotion and I really like it! I especially like the mainly monochromatic color scheme.  It looks like a photograph from America's Next Top Model.  There is a subtle hint of an animal head underneath the rock the woman is standing on.  There is also a skull under her foot.  The flaming arrows are also very interesting.  This piece employs many symbols that make me wonder what they are intended to convey.  I wonder what other hidden elements are in this design that can't be easily identified at this size...

oooo aaaa

Pacific Paint "Creatures" campaign

Print Ads, Consumer 

Jake Tesoro/Manuel Villafania/Nolan Fabular, art directors; Bryan Sly, writers; Melvin Mangada, executive creative director; G-nie Arambulo, photographer; Rusby Gonzales, digital designer; May Dalisay, agency producer; Chromagraph, production company; Kara Filamor, account director; PHD Media Network, media agency; Pacific Paint (Boysen) Philippines Inc., client. 

This series of advertisements is stunning.  I like the use of black backgrounds which not only make the creatures jump off the page, but also serve to unite the three.  The use of colors that resemble creatures in life helps to make them easily apparent.  I like the simplicity of these advertisements and the fact that they could easily double as fine art.  The logo placement is very tasteful and unobtrusive.  The highlights reveal a shiny quality that looks good for the ad and the paint!

she got hops

The photograph above was displayed within a series including similar images, featuring different sports and athletes.  I love the raw energy and awe inspiring nature of this piece.  The photographer's choice of using black and white gives the photo even more of a dramatic edge than is already created by the arms of the crowd.

smart car

Found in: Lürzer's Intl Archive Vol 3 - 2010

I find this advertisement to be brilliant.  It is simple, humorous, and innovative.  The point of view at which the car is shown is unconventional, visually interesting, and curiosity inspiring.  I believe the choice of background color may be a subtle implication of "green" ideology.  This is the only aspect of the design I may change, if it were my work.  I feel the color-concept relationship in all this green advertising is way overused and not very interesting.  Perhaps I'm just hyper-sensitive and this ad isn't making this connection at all..what do you think?

a fine piece of mail

This greeting card was found in Celebration Graphics Sourcebook by John Jones.  I'm attracted to the personal quality and creativity exhibited through the use of an actual sparkler.  In case you can't read the top of the card pictured up top, it says "Begin the New Year brightly."  The front, inner top and bottom, and back of the card are unified through the repetitious use of the sparkler concept.  The instructions are cute and silly, but certainly enhance the design.  There was some good thought put into this design and It will be an inspiration to me in our upcoming menu project.

rouge

 

This is an advertisement for hair dye that uses the sex appeal of lips to its advantage! I can think of many other ways that Rouge could have tied in sex appeal, but none of them are as clever or tasteful as this.  I want to know more about their hair dye when I see this poster.  The color and shadow similarities between a part in one's hair and the part in one's lips is apparent and is working well.  The size and placement of type is also working because it is not obvious or distracting.

Good look.

Evian "The Baby Inside" print ads

FOUND IN: Lürzer's Int'l Archive 

Ads, TV and Posters worldwide Vol. 3-2010
Agnes Cavard, art director;
Valerie Chidlovsky, writer;
Agnes Cavard/Valerie Chidlovsky, creative directors;
Nathaniel Goldberg, photographer.

This series of ads is silly, clever, striking, and unforgettable.  I'm attracted to Evian's campaign and the two men above in particular because they are funny.  I love when t-shirt artists employ this technique, which involves the person wearing the shirt in the design.  I have a t-shirt that has what look like necklaces strung across it and in graphic design way back in high school, I made a t-shirt with an unbuttoning dress shirt.  It's an idea that's used a lot, but it hasn't gotten old to me yet.  Benji - I love what you've done for your t-shirt design and I see similarities in your concept.

peel back the pounds

Communication Arts - Design Annual 2010

There are many ways these calendars could be interpreted, but from a design perspective, they're so creative.  I will say that the female calendar is much stronger than its male counterpart.  Since the woman appears to be putting her weight on one leg, and bending the other, her body shape is much more recognizable than the male's.  The man stands vertically flexing his muscles, however there is little "fat" below his arms in the heaviest figure.  I don't see a body shape in the male's largest outline.  The designer made good decisions about the colors in each version.  I think that these designs are so strong, but I wonder how they would sell as actual products.  I don't think I'd ever be tempted to purchase a calendar like this, even if I were on a weight-losing mission.  Unless things went better than I imagine they could, I wouldn't ever want to change the month!  In addition, this isn't the kind of calendar you'd give someone as a present.  Even people who like the product may be wary of hanging it in a public space because of what it says about its owner.  Nonetheless, it demonstrates a creative solution.

rrapED around

Disclosures: A photographic Construct 1982, Found in: Julie Rrap Body Double by Victoria Lynn

My Mom brought me this awesome book full of work by Julie Rrap from a trip to Sydney, Australia.  I hadn't ever heard of this photographer and mixed media artist, but she's got some really neat work.  I think this piece in particular is striking because it is uninhibited, has a narrative quality, and displays wise use of repetition and color.  Rrap executes a visual representation of the process of disclosure which is simple and elegant.   Her "exposure," if you will, initially reveals her head and left arm, followed by the rest of her upper body, and so on.  The black and white areas almost start to appear as misrepresenting the woman, as we follow the images like text, from left to right.  This is likely because most of us see in color and therefore perceive it as more true.

I especially like that artist included the tears in the paper on the black and white images.  This clearly defines the separation between the photos and also articulates the layering of the images. This brings the image of unwrapping a gift into my head, which is something I believe many people understand to be a metaphor for revealing of one's body.  Most photographers consider a print the final outcome of their work - I like that Julie Rrap has done something unique and hands on with the medium.

In regards to visual composition, I appreciate that the artist used a slightly different photo in each frame.  It is not immediately obvious, but may be contain enough variation to stimulate initial interest.  She is posing in front of a beige wall that is close to the color of her skin and her hair creates the most contrast within the image.  I wonder how a black background would change this series.

Which do you find more cool?

Found in Communication Arts 2009 Advertising Annual
Art Directors - Richard Copping/Eddie Wong Yew Heng, Writer - Andrew Petch, Executive Creative Director - Richard Copping, Photographer - Sebastian Tan, Shooting Gallery, Digital Retouchers - Deedee Ferninandus, Quay Digital/Kendrick Wong, Quay Digital, Production Manager - Deric Tan, Producers - Katie Middleton/Rebecca Wise, Executive Agency Producer - Esther Yue, Ad Agency - Saatchi & Saatchi Singapore, Client - Paras Sharma, ESPN

 

Found in Andreas Gursky
Photographer - Andreas Gursky

Pyongyang II, Diptychon, 2007

When I found the above image created for ESPN, I was impressed by the concept behind it and the way in which it was executed.  The message is clear and the client's logo is well placed.  It looks like they've given all of the photographs a blueish greenish tone, which not only unifies the collection of images, but also resembles the light reflected in a dark room by a television.   I'm sure that many sports viewers can relate to being one of those people sitting in front of their TV, cheering as though someone can hear them.  This could be a stretch, but i'd guess that the large majority of people in the U.S. have at least one memory of doing the wave in a crowd of energized fans.  It's an impressive sight - the wave, that is until you become familiar with what is tradition in North Korea.  

The second image is a photograph of what is known as the mass games. Thousands of people in North Korea train year round for this jaw-dropping spectacle.   In the image of the birds, you can see what look like pixels, but they are actually colored cards, each being held and changed by someone.  The amount of teamwork, determination, and talent that can be witnessed in this picture alone is astonishing.  The photographer's positioning seems obvious, but that is why it is successful.  Viewers are given access to the formations created by the people on the ground, and can also see the mosaic picture straight ahead.