For my practical I would like to create a poster series that shows how women were portrayed within advertising from each decade, starting in the 1950s. What sparked this idea was the quote "If I were to become acquainted with american drinking habits merely through advertising, I would presume that whiskey and gin were only consumed by men." I thought that I could create a bold typographical piece using this quote, and finding similar quotes from other decades to describe women's portrayal at the time. I need to do lots of research into this, but I feel it's a strong idea for me to pursue.
Techniques that apply to advertising:
- Photography/illustrations
- Photo manipulation
- Sticking to the "norm"
- Making people feel inferior if they don't consume
- Sex appeal
Content:
- Always includes men or women
- Product
- Sticks to the gender of norm sexes
- Includes semiotics where we instantly recognise the ad
- Images and photography always enhanced to look desirable but unachievable
- Uses people as objects to promote the product
Communication:
- Gender is exploited
- More expensive product is portrayed as more higher class
- Slimmer = better
- John Lewis and Sainsbury's Christmas ad gives good emotional response
- You will be happier if you buy!
How will you engage each of these aspects of practice based research?
Research:
- Look at existing work
- Questionnaires
- Cultural implications of nudity
- Further reading
- Design philosophy
- Look at sources from essay
- Ethical design
Analysis:
- Analyse research and gain inspiration
- Decide what is relevant
- Perfume, lingerie, domestic items, rape awareness, nightclub safety
Exploration/Evaluation:
- Experiment with media and designs
- Evaluate and narrow down to most relevant/appropriate
- Explore how content changes through different deliverables, e.g. poster, bill board, magazine.
Testing:
- Post to social media and ask opinions
- Questionnaire
- Make sure it's not offensive and relevant.
PRACTICAL PROPOSAL -
The essay question that I have chosen is "How does advertising construct our ideas of gender?". My hypothesis is that it enforces a normal way of living on society and male dominance and hetero-normalism has become accepted. I have mainly researched into the way these adverts effect society throughout history, and the developments that have happened over time. For example, in the 1950's, the gender divide was much larger than it is today. I've also looked at different adverts from the modern day and commented on the message they convey, why these adverts were made and the techniques used. As my essay covers quite a broad range of subjects to do with my given topic, I'd relate it through my practical work by focusing in on one part of the research I've conducted. I think I'll try to look at modern day advertising and how it can be improved, or re-create some famous ads. I will gain primary research by asking people what they think about advertising and how it could be improved. I could also post to social media and create a questionnaire. I will also look at books, the internet and research into ethical advertising, to ensure that I create something appropriate. I will probably use digital methods to create my work because it's what I'm most confident with. I'm not the best at photography so I feel that an advertisement that's illustration based or purely text will suit my style best. A text based advert can also convey a strong message as they're straight to the point and no-nonsense. I will test my work by asking members of the public, friends, family and social media outlets for opinions. I think this is suitable because there will be a range of different types of people reviewing and giving their opinions on my work. Once I have a solid idea for my practical work, hopefully by the start of next week (commencing 23rd of February) I am hoping to start right away. I want to finish it well before the hand in deadline, so I can tweak it and get feedback for it if needed. I'm not going to rush my work but I feel that the faster I can get it finished, the better it is for me. I'm hoping to have the practical work finished by the end of March/Mid April at the latest.
Today we were asked to start thinking about our practical outcome and to begin planning what we're going to do in stages. My question is about gender and advertising, and I've had a few ideas spring to mind while I've been researching and writing my essay, but none of them are particularly strong. This session helped me gain a clearer understanding of what we need to do and what I should be producing.
Techniques that apply to advertising:
- Photography/Illustration
- Photo manipulation
- Sticking to what society deems "normal"
- Making people feel inferior if they don't buy the product
- Sex appeal
Content of advertising:
- Always includes men or women
- Product
- Sticks to the gender norms
- Includes semiotics where we instantly recognise the advert
- Images and photography always enhanced to look desirable but unachievable
- Uses people as objects to promote the product
Communication:
- Gender is exploited
- More expensive items are portrayed as more high class
- Slimmer = better
- John Lewis and Sainsburys Christmas ads give a good emotional response
- You will be happier if you buy!
During my practice based research, I will be researching, analysing, exploring, evaluating and testing.
Research:
- Look at existing work
- Questionnaires
- Further reading
- Design philosophy
- Look at the sources used within my essay
- Ethical Design
Analysis:
- Analyse research and gain inspiration
- Decide what is relevant and what to take forward
Exploration/Evaluation:
- Experiment with media and designs
- Evaluate and narrow down to most relevant/appropriate
- Explore how content changes through different deliverables e.g. poster, billboard or magazine.
Testing:
- Post to social media and gain opinions
- Questionnaire
- Ask friends/family/public
- Make sure it's not offensive and relevant.
