Heaven and Hell Research

After a fair amount of image searching I culled out these three compositions from the world of advertising. In these, some are more overt(Camel ad, Heineken ad) than others(Annie Leibovitz's Disney ad) in their display of "positive imagery". But all three show an ideal of some sort either from imaginary views of California living and the world of fairy tales to a psychedelic look into where beers are born.

Since I was searching for images in advertising I thought it would be interesting to find products with few redeeming qualities (cigarettes, beer, Disney) to explore how an artist or designer can manipulate a viewer and/or consumer. The first thing that jumps out at me is the use of light in all of the images. In the beer and cigarette ads it is almost flooding the layout with a partially obscured sun near the center of the composition drawing the eye in and up to the item on display. In the Disney ad an almost painterly vision of two movie stars residing in the world of make believe seems to be almost entirely manufactured. The use of artificial light in this one helps to focus the eye on the stars of the portrait in a way that leaves little doubt as to the "goodness" of these ladies. The background stands in stark contrast to the subjects further emphasizing this. There is also an ample supply of whimsical shapes and forms that adds a dimension of humor and light-heartedness to place the viewer at ease and maybe give rise to a grin. Also, the use of bright colors runs through all of these. Inviting hues of blue, green and pink are used to great effect.

In these images, the ones from advertising-more accurately public service messages-guide the viewer to an unequivocal point of view in regards to the subject matter. With the Liebovitz's image of Elizabeth II the interpretation might be a little more complex. All three have a similar color palette. Many grays, blacks and dark browns are spread throughout the compositions. The color temperatures are very cool as well. These together lend an ominous feel. In researching the Elizabeth II image I learned the background was added later. Perhaps this can take the viewers mind to issues of family turmoil or popular discontent with the system of British monarchy.

With the simple placement of faces, hands and caps an optical illusion is created for the MADD poster. Subtle but effective. All three of these basically take iconic figures and events and flip them on their head to make a point that is negative.