Journal 8: what are today’s advertisements saying?

 

I really like the use of negative space on this advertisement to sell the car. The phrase "Small just got big" plays into the car as well as the advertisement as well. The two page spread in Entertainment Weekly's Issue #1137 features very little words, visuals, or really much of anything besides light clouds. This is smart because in the world of attention grabbing, filling your space with information and factoids may seem like a good idea but it is overwhelming in reality. The red of the car stands out against the baby blue background and that's all you need to catch someone's eye.

Journal 7: what are today’s advertisements saying?

 

Here is an advertisement that will not stand the test of time. The whole idea of the ad is that you "Like" one thing but love another. Since Facebook coined the phrase and symbol that goes along with "Like"-ing something, whether it be a status, tv show, or whatever other mundane thing popular social networking sites are trying to get us to buy into at the moment, this ad utilizes the cultural significance in it's ad. Good for now since they are playing off a sort of esoteric vibe but in 5 years it will mean nothing.

Journal 6: I’m for it...wait..I mean, I’m against it!

"Cig Skull"

Journal 5: Metaphor

 

 "Make your man one of the freshest smelling places on Earth."

This advertisement uses the metaphor that your man is a mountain, like one of the freshest places on Earth. In an ad campaign known for its over-the-top commercials, comparing a man to a fresh smelling mountain seems almost tame. I believe the metaphor is utilized correctly because it works into the what the product is. The point of Old Spice is to make you smell good and if the ad is saying that you will become as fresh smelling as a mountain, then it has served its purpose.

Journal 4: Symbols All Around You

As I just found out, pretty much any graphic is a symbol. The project was easy enough to find symbols, but finding the best symbols was the tricky part.

My first symbol is for Arizona State Parks. I really liked how the cactus and tree looked like they made up a full image because Arizona’s topography is so diverse that you could find either lush trees or pointy cacti within the state’s borders. I found it outside the Riordan Park.

My second symbol is a crosswalk sign. They’re all over the city so it doesn’t really matter where I found it. The simplicity of the sign is the reason it hasn’t been changed for many years. It clearly shows the street and the pedestrian crossing it. The crisp clean lines can’t be misconstrued so that the sign is always evident. The classic black on yellow design allows cars to see it in the dark and therefore increases the safety of the streets.

The third design made me realize something about a lot of signs that are commonly seen around town: the “DO NOT” sign. Very few signs tell you that you CAN do something these days. I remember looking at this no parking sign when I was a kid and thinking, whether it was the paint fading or something else, that the sign was really just a big “R” in a circle. Content in that knowledge, I never really tried to find another meaning behind the sign. With that in mind, I feel the symbol is not the best that it could be. Most people are accustomed to this symbol but it is inherently flawed. Most of the “P” is obscured and a single “P” on a sign really doesn’t mean anything.

The fourth symbol was posted on a bathroom door in the Communications building. I feel I covered my idea of bathroom blandness in my previous journal.

The fifth symbol, similar to the sixth symbol, is of a smoking cigarette. Despite the fact that it looks a little like a snake holding a long gun, it is a pretty recognizable symbol. Smoking has become a hot button issue so there are more and more cigarette symbols around these days. However, mostly all of them deal with how to dispose or completely get rid of cigarettes.

The seventh symbol is funny without context. You have to wonder about what kind of situation happened in the past that caused someone to become so infuriated that they had a sign printed that no longer allowed couches on the premises. However, that story, like most good stories, is false. This sign was on a dumpster where apparently you can’t throw away your couch. Boring.

I like the symbol of the eighth panel. The Waste Management logo “W” and “M” sync up so well.  The color choice is vibrant on what could have been a lackluster logo for a lackluster company.

The ninth symbol is the recycle sign, found on various recycling boxes and such. The arrows that fold and weave into themselves is a brilliant design. It really explains the process of recycling in much simpler terms than words could.

The tenth symbol is the handicapped symbol. While it obviously makes sense as someone in a wheelchair, when I was forming my personal view of the world (early 1990’s) there was a little show called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on. Now, I’m not saying that the handicapped symbol looks more like a ninja turtle than a wheelchair, but the mind of a 5 year old is not one of logic and reason. I figured they had to park their van somewhere.

The funniest version of the wet floor sign I have ever seen was at in a Wal-Mart bathroom. Someone had… well actually, it would be easier to just show you:

It just goes to show that a simple change of a symbol, really any variation in the monotony of endless clones of symbols can force you to re-examine the symbols around you. I will never look at a wet floor sign the same way again.

The USPS symbol, found on the side of a mailbox shows the supposed sleekness of the mail system. Had I never tried to receive a package in a timely fashion, I would be drawn to the power of the eagle and the illusion of speed that comes with it.

The thirteenth symbol goes along with the “NO COUCHES” sign from earlier. Apparently someone was having an awesome time in that dumpster and “the man” brought them down. Fight the power, couch/oven owners.

My penultimate symbol is the Quest logo, cleverly conveying speed as well as forming out the “Q” letter associated with Quest. I found it on a form for Quest. Naturally.

The final symbol was found on “Big Brother Big Sister” collection bin. The logo is nice because it’s clearly two people holding hands but the shadow from their arms forms a heart in the negative space. And that’s real special.

Journal 3: Arrow Heaven

 

 

Arrows are everywhere, from pointing out items of interest to leading others to places or even to add dramatic tension to a design. The arrow has a dynamic shape that creates implied lines all over. It really is amazing how often arrows are used in daily life and how much we take them for granted.

When I first read the assignment, I realized all the arrows that were immediately around me. There was the dial on my speakers, the back and forward buttons on my internet tab, the volume on my alarm clock, even the cursor I was using on my laptop. The point (pun intended) of the arrow is meant to direct and in this day and age, directions are everywhere as our lives get more and more complicated.

Walking outside to photograph the arrows for the assignment, I had a sense of dread that I wouldn’t be able to find arrows on anything other than street signs. It came as a surprise that arrows were found in so many different places. Sure, a lot of the street signs had arrows but I wanted to show more than that. I found that basically anything could be an arrow. The tops of fences, shadows, traffic cones, you name it. Phil Patton’s article suggests that arrows have been around forever, “dating back roughly 25,000 to 50,000 years”. It’s easy to see why this is the case. 

My first arrow is a side profile of a sign outside my apartment complex. The arrows at the top are for a purely aesthetic feel, simply giving the post a completed feel towards the top.

The second arrow was painted on the ground over by Michael’s crafts, detailing on the direction that cars should drive. There are numerous of these lines all over Flagstaff, directing traffic and such.

The third arrow pictured was on the front glass of a target sliding door. It’s interesting that if the green arrow means “go” on a door, the opposite doors had a “do not enter” sign of a red ring with a red horizontal line through the middle. It’s the combination of colors and symbols that we recognize as a society. Had the arrow been surrounded by a red border, there would guaranteed be a few confused customers.

My fourth arrow picture was on a sheet for postal service mailbox change forms. The bold arrow was very out of place on the official sheet and thereby emphasized the importance of the text it was referring too.

The next arrow was found on top of a fence. I find it interesting that the general shape of the fence posts would not have been changed structurally had there been no semi circle indentations in the sides but whatever the reason the manufacturers decided to emphasize the arrow on top of the fence.

The sixth arrow was found pointing to a nearby park. Pretty self-explanatory.

The seventh arrow was showing visitors where buildings in an apartment complex. The up arrow can be confusing sometimes. It can either mean that the thing is forward or literally straight in the air. Something to think about.

My eighth arrow is on an EXIT sign, probably the most common and universally known arrow. It is one of the only arrows required by law to be put up in buildings.

The Gatorade arrow is supposed to resemble a lightning bolt. The point of the arrow is the most concentrated part of the lightning, making whatever it is pointing to very dead. It’s no wonder a big part of the Gatorade brand is “electrolytes” when their logo is electricity.

My tenth arrows are the roof supports to the Fieldhouse building. I always knew the supports looked weird but it wasn’t until I had to take a picture that I noticed that it looked like a bunch of arms outstretched and pointing to the sky. It reminded me of a war propaganda poster that I once saw but can’t locate for this assignment.

The eleventh arrow was spray-painted on the ground, which is the universal sign for “there are pipes or something important under here”. It’s funny that an arrow is really the only thing you can spray-paint on the ground that won’t be considered vandalism.

The next two arrows are both at school, pointing to various buildings and legal street moves.

The fourteenth arrow is a mailbox. I would definitely say that this is my most iffy arrow out of all of them. It’s really not so much shaped like an arrow as it signifies one. When the flag is up, it means mail. Flag down; no one loves you.

Arrow number fifteen is a shadow of a fence post that I found in a graveyard. No, it does not lead to treasure.

The sixteenth arrow is probably the only unintentional arrow out of all of them. The tiny Christmas tree I found next to a gravestone struck me as really special for someone to leave by a grave.

The seventeenth arrow is a traffic cone, where the arrow shape is less of a directional pointer as it is a stable design that allows for less tipping and more stacking.

My eighteenth arrow uses the arrow as a decorative topping but also as a security feature. The point defined by the tip of the arrow dissuades trespassers as well as creating implied lines that makes the fence seem higher than it is.

The last two arrows are posted on signs. Yikes. I am completely out of arrow commentary.