commercial art
The contemporary commercial art and design of today has no doubt been created through the heavy influences of 20th century art. Most corporations who advertise on a large scale look back to the most influential art of the past century when creating their ads. It's almost impossible to walk the city streets without being bombarded by billboards with crafty designs and catchy phrases. With a little research though, it's fairly easy to find that the basis of this commercial art can be found in the art of the last one hundred years.
Cartoons come first to mind when thinking about the different ways 20th century art have impacted modern day art and design. Long before I saw the original "American Gothic" by Grant Wood, I laughed at a portrait of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck standing together in front of a farm house with pitch fork in hand. Most cartoons seem to have an underlying humor meant to be understood by even the most articulate and intellectual adult, while at the same time being simplistic enough to entertain a small child. Cartoonists successfully accomplish this by being well read and educated in myth, history and art.
Advertising agencies must be just as well educated in order to create influential advertisements that will impact consumers. "De Stijl" created by Peit Mondrian has without a doubt been one of the most popular designs incorporated into today's commercial art. On almost every bottled hair care product from Loreal is a composed set of lines complete with red, yellow and blue squares, expressing striking similarities to "De Stijl." Tommy Hilfiger uses clean lines and the three primary colors in all of his advertisements as well as on his signature label which also mimic the style of Peit Mondrian. While visiting a museum and studying a Mondrian, most of the general public repeatedly remarks to how his paintings look as if "anyone could do them." However, using the same artistic logic and redesigning his work on a bottle of hairspray or a t-shirt, the public becomes awe-stricken and then rushes out in a mad fury to purchase this stylish product which is actually based on the same style of art which if hung in a museum looks to them like something "anyone could make."
Advertisers look also to the photography of the past century when designing ads for magazines.
Elijah Anderson’s Code of the Street book depicts two opposite communities within Philadelphia, the poor inner city black community and the residential middle class community. The majority of the book revolves around describing how the inner city functions on a ‘code of the street’ mentality, respect and toughness. Crime, violence and poverty run high in the inner city and following the code is a way to survive. Having a decent family or a street family greatly influences the path an adolescent will take involving delinquency. Anderson divides the book up into different themes and explores each one my not only giving factual information, but he also incorporates real life stories of various people who survived the inner city life style. Some of the themes include territory, survival by any means necessary, toughness, separate set of norms, campaign of respect and the mating game. Some criminological theories are also noticeable that take place in the inner city community.
Anderson’s theory examined African Americans living in America’s inner cities that are driven to follow the “street code” and work to maintain respect, loyalty, and their own self-image. The “street code” Anderson is referring to is “a cultural adaptation” which is the cause of violent crime in America’s inner cities (Anderson Article PDF, 3). Since these people are living in mainly impoverished neighborhoods with easy access to drugs and guns, as well as high rates of crime and violence, “everyone feels isolated and alienated from the rest of America” (Vold, 187). Anderson continues to distinguish between “decent” people and “street people.” Those who are “decent” families live in accordance with a “civil code” that upholds values in comparison with the rest of society such as maintaining a job, obtaining an education, protecting their children and following the law. Additionally, “street” families tend to fend for themselves, and when young, grow up without adult supervision and are often abused. This alone causes a dangerous environment because children then, “learn that to solve any kind of interpersonal problem one must quickly resort to hitting or other violent behavior” (Anderson Article PDF, 5). When brought up in an inner city “street” family, racism is a leading factor that causes the youth to construct a negative outlook on the rest of society. When these inner city, lo...
The inclination to violence stems from several circumstances of life among the poor; the stigma of race, drug use and drug trafficking, and lack of employment, as well as the media and, family/peer association. The Code of the Streets by Elijah Anderson, is a groundbreaking essay the social scientist wrote, taking us inside of a world that most of us only read about. Anderson shows us how a frantic search for acceptance and respect governs social relations among the African American race; primarily the young men.
Miller first mentions how in any study a lot of scientists use animals as a way to test out theories. In this case animals were given modified food and what they found was that the food was harming the animals; they were suffering. Considering what occurred to the animals, why should we even consider trusting a modified plant? “Genetically modified foods - also called genetically engineered foods – contain DNA that scientists have modified in an unnatural way, such as by adding a gene from a different organism, according to the world Health Organization” (Miller). In this aspect no one would be willing to purchase a product like this, there should be a reason to be scared of the word GMO. Some of the make up`s are good for our economy and the plants but they cannot or should not be classified as a GMO. Miller even points out “At the event, Druker, a public interest attorney, argued that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has misrepresented the safety of genetically modified foods and violated federal food safety law by allowing them onto the market.” That right there should answer anyone’s question about GMO`s not being proven to be safe, because not every make up is suitable for our
The controversy surrounding genetically modified organisms (GMOs) lies in the lack of acceptable research on the topic. While numerous studies and experiment have been conducted, unbiased results have yet to be published. On one hand, bioengineers claim their GMOs and GMO products are not harmful and may even be beneficial, while on the other hand, scientists and agriculturists claim they are terrified about the uncertainty surrounding these unnatural products. This paper will explain what GMOs are, then analyze positive and negative claims and determine if they have any validity.
It’s often unacknowledged that there are designers that are behind creating and drawing out the designs we see on our everyday products, whether it be toilet paper, bleach, or a can of soup. There are people behind creating the enticing labels that urge us to crave and need that product. Andy Warhol shined a light on a whole world of unrecognised artists,
...e here. Let me go further. If my son is struck by a bolt of lightning I will blame some of the people here. If his plane show fall into the sea or his ship sink beneath the waves of the ocean, if he should catch a mortal fever, if his automobile should be struck by a train, such is my superstition that I would blame the ill will felt by people here."(Puzo 291)
Advertising in the 50s was primarily focused on the return of traditional family values, and portraying the consumer’s role in society’s prestige. But, during the recession of 1959 to 1961, the time was ripe for some innovation in the advertising industry. Surly enough, a single ad appeared that changed the course of advertising history. The Volkswagen Beetle, a seemingly ugly car with all odds against it in the American market of huge, tail-finned vehicles of the 1950s, surprisingly prospered. The advertisement campaign broke all previous rules of using wide-angle photography, and beautiful women. These advertisements stole the American hearts with their wit and honesty.
...ate, this was deemed by the European Union to be “dangerous to the environment.” It produces super weeds that require higher toxic chemicals, deplete soil quality, and affect wildlife along with non-pest population. Even though these studies were made of glyphosate, bio tech companies were still claiming that their product was “biodegradable”, “safe with low toxicity”, and stating that “it leave the soil clean after use.” These were clear and false claims that were immediately called out by the French Union. Another important environmental risk is the fact that since these GMO crops have foreign DNA in them, it is unknown exactly how they will react in the environment around them or how they will affect the current population of species. It is evident that these crops are uncontrollable and are a mutation that will have some sort of effect on the world around them.
Genetically Modified crops, or GM crops, refer to plants used in agriculture whose DNA has been purposely altered in order to create a better, more efficient outcome. There are many different GM crops being used today, most commonly plants with built in pesticide or chemical resistance, such as BT corn and roundup ready soy. Though you may not know it, most of what you eat has some form of a genetically modified organism in it. The Food and drug administration, also known as the FDA, has stated that companies in the US are not required to inform the consumer on whether or not a food contains any form of a GMO, or a Genetically Modified Organism. This means that you would not necessarily be informed on whether or not the foods you are buying and eating are GM foods. Of course GM foods have to meet the same requirements as any conventional food would, but just because there is no immediate harm to humans, does not mean that there are no consequences at all. This also could suggest that since it is difficult to predict and prove long term effects of using GM crops, companies are just selling these abnormal crops to farmers and assuming that only good things will result. GM Crops may be created with the intention of helping, but there are many ramifications that are continuing to be ignored. These would include negative effects to human life, unintended harm to animals and the environment, and the fact that we are already losing control of the modified plants that we have created.
In conclusion, Monsanto is destroying the genetic integrity of most naturally grown foods, ruining the life style of many small farmers who depend on their crops to make a living, and are stealing money from people who have Monsanto’s corn on their land just from natural cross breeding of plants. The public needs to hear about what Monsanto is doing. Their website seems perfectly happy and makes them seem super good and environmentally friendly but that’s what is made to do. They only tell you what they want you to hear not what you need to hear.
During the 19th and 20th century, America –mostly white collar, middle class Americans- saw a great increase in salaries and a huge rise in mass production which paved the way for the modern American consumerism which we know today. The advertising scene saw a dramatic boost during that period and tried to latch on to this growing pool of emerging consumers. Although only limited to print, advertising during this pivotal period showed panache and reflected American society
McFall, E. (2004). Advertising: A Cultural Economy, London: Sage, Page 3, Page 110, Page 111
“Magazine Ads of the 50s through the 80s.” BlogSpot, N.p. 8 August 2008. Web. 4 October 2009.
‘Creative without strategy is called “art”. Creative with strategy is called ‘advertising’. Creativity grabs attention. People are flooded with millions of ads each day, but screens most of them out. Creativity allows advertisements to get past the filtering process and appeal to the intended audience. (Altstiel & Grow 2012) Advertising agencies nowadays are forced to think outside the box, by looking at the bigger picture and constantly discovering new ideas and ways to grab people’s attention. A successful creative advertisement results from the ability to incorporate strategic concepts in order to draw the line between plain art and advertising. There are no rules, no patterns to creating highly creative advertising. (Lee 2000)