The Atomic Age & Cold War

This week in Visual Culture we were looking at the time of The Atomic Age and Cold War. I am going to briefly look over why there was a cold war and what was meant by the atomic age. There was 2 main sides in the cold war, the communist side, which was mainly recognised as being Russia (USSR) and there was a Capitalist side, which was mainly recognised as being America. Communism in Russia had caused them to lose creativity, well not lose it, but they were prevented from expressing themselves through art as they were forced to take on the art form of 'Social Realism'. Social Realism was the only art form allowed to be produced and this was used on many occasions within Russian propaganda posters and to show their leader as a wonderful man.

Thanks to dear Stalin for a Happy childhood, 1936 [1]

In the image shown above you can see how one of the Russian leaders called 'Stalin', who was one of the main believers in communism, is made out to look happy along with the children. He is made out to be the good guy, which is hat he wanted as this would make more people like him.

Now I am going to take a little look at the Capitalist side in America. The Cold War was affecting the USA massively as they were challenging to be the stronger side over Russia. The Americans had created a character known as 'Captain America', which they had created as a type of fear relief. Captain America was a strong soldier, that was big with younger audiences as it was mainly aimed towards them. Behind the creation of Captain America they were hiding the fact that there was a potentially huge nuclear war on the horizon.

Captain America Comic Book [2]

In the comic book above you can see the character of Captain America, but he is depicted fighting against Hitler, who also ran a communist nation trying to take over he world. This comic book basically shows that America will fight against communism and it will not back down. The suit that Captain America is wearing is a reinvention of the American Flag so it will be seen as a symbol of honour.

This leads me onto the space race. America and Russia were in a battle to be the first people into space, to which the Russians won the first part of he race by getting a satellite called 'Sputnik' into space on 4 October, 1957. They were then the first nation to get someone out of the Earths atmosphere and into space, this man was called Yuri Gargarin. He completed this milestone in 1959, but the American's were preparing something to better both of the Russian successions. In 1969, the USA managed to get a space craft out of the earths atmosphere, and to land onto the moon. To which the men who manned the craft got out of it and stepped onto the moon. I believe that this was a much better achievement than the Russians. Also to show their honour towards their country and express its strength, they placed an American flag on the moon to mark it down as being first stepped on by the USA.

Neil Armstrong, Moon Landing, 1969 [3]

Finally I am going to look into the Atomic Age where America and Russia where both in the possessions of Nuclear Warheads. Through many advancements scientists had come across ways not only to produce and maintain nuclear, but also to use it for negative purposes, like when the USA dropped a nuclear bomb on Japan in the Second World War in 1945 to end all disputes. This leads me to believe that the USA has a slight psychological advantage over Russia when it comes to the potential of Nuclear war as they have already used a Nuclear Bomb in the past.

Japan Nuclear Bomb, 1945 [4]

I would like to say that these times of the Atomic Age and The Cold War must have been very scary times across the whole world, with two leading countries such as America and Russia being on the brink of Nuclear Warfare. They Both had different views on how the world should be, to which they both fought for their way to become global, in which the Capitalists and America seem to have won as communism is very scarce in todays world.

Image Reference:
[1]http://vi.sualize.us/thanks_to_dear_stalin_for_a_happy_childhood_1936_soviet_ussr_propaganda_picture_vYA.html
[2]http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/Shadowgeek10/news/?a=53475
[3]http://www.dezinteressante.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Apollo-11-astronaut-1600x1200.jpg
[4]http://www.trumanlibrary.org/photos/bombnag.jpg

Naked & Nude

This week we were looking at the Naked and Nude in Art and Design. There is an understanding to be had when explaining the effect the word Naked has and the effect that the word Nude has. If you say that someone is Naked then it comes across as being initially quite shocking as if that person should not be Naked. I believe it is the sharpness of the 'K' when pronouncing it. However when you pronounce the word Nude it comes across as being very subtle and innocent as if you are accepting that they are Nude.

Naked in art or design to me comes across as being a way of showing someone in a rude sort of manor, whereas Nude in art or design comes across in a way that we are celebrating the human form. There are many forms of both in art and design, however the majority is used to show people Nude. The first example of Nude art is dating back to Ancient Greece, when an artist called Michelangelo crafted a sculpture of David. It is a very large statue, which shows the human body of a man in very good health, as the muscles are very defined. Michelangelo studied the human body a lot before he produced this masterpiece, so he understood how to scale different parts of the body.

David, Michelangelo, 1501-1504 [1]

Men being shown Nude in art was only something that happened in the Ancient period and in today's world is a very uncommon thing to see. Mainly it is females that are shown nude in today's world, which I believe is down to them continuously being shown nude in artwork. I am going to look at a campaign called 'No More Page 3' which is to do with The Sun newspaper displaying topless women on the third page in each of its Newspapers. The group behind the campaign used the idea of cutting out all of the men and women in the magazine, to compare how they were each perceived in The Sun. They done this for 6 months and the results are quite shocking. They show that most of the males are sports figures who are fully clothed, with the closest to them being naked/nude, is them having their tops off. Now onto the women, the majority of the women are topless and wearing just underpants, this is showing women, although it does also show women who are wearing clothing. However The Sun is known as being a sports newspaper, it works well for that of the males, however there was not one single female sports person displayed in The Sun over the 6 month period of the experiment. Below is an image of the final piece along with a video to show the construction of the main piece of the campaign.

No More Page 3, The Sun Newspaper, 2014 [2]

Next I am going to look at a surrealist type of artwork by someone called Sarah Lucas. She produced a piece called 'Au Naturel' to link with the natural human body. However the piece consists of a mattress that is sat up at a 90 degree angle. There is then 2 oranges and a cucumber positioned to represent a mans genitals, and beside that is a bucket laid on its side to represent the female genitals and 2 melons sat into a ripped area of the mattress to represent breasts.

Au Naturel, Sarah Lucas, 1994 [3]

Another piece that she has produced under the title 'Chicken Knickers', is another example of ways to represent human genitalia. In this instance she has represented the female genitalia with a chicken. The image shows a chicken positioned over plain white knickers, and the light has been aimed upwards onto the chicken to highlight the opening. A very shocking piece of imagery.

Chicken Knickers, Sarah Lucas, 1997 [4]

Finally I am going to look at how a particular artist called Jenny Saville used her own body to create naked portraits. To create these portraits she laid onto some Plexiglas and was photographed from underneath, but she didn't just lay onto the Plexiglas. She distorted her body by pulling and twisting her skin, dragging her body around the Plexiglas and in many other ways to make herself look misshapen. I believe that she is trying to show how unattractive the human body can be made.

Closed Contact, Jenny Saville, 1995-1996 [5]

Closed Contact, Jenny Saville, 1995-1996 [6]

Closed Contact, Jenny Saville, 1995-1996 [7]

I have looked at many different ways that the human form has been shown in Art and Design through both Naked and Nude. Naked art is that which is more shocking visually, whereas Nude art is more naturally beautiful. I have given examples of both above along with representations of the Naked/Nude human genitalia. I believe that art will never go back on itself to a time where being Naked/Nude is acceptable as society has shaped it to be unacceptable.

Image Reference:
[1]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Michelangelo's_David.JPG
[2]http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/12/02/no-more-page-3-the-sun-women-pictures-cut-out_n_6253238.html
[3]https://imageobjecttext.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/lucas-au-naturel-1994.jpg
[4]http://sartle.com/sartle_images//imagesi/1000690.jpg
[5]http://jennysavilleverticalanalysis.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/vi-british-youth-art-of-1970s.html
[6]http://jennysavilleverticalanalysis.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/vi-british-youth-art-of-1970s.html
[7]http://bumbumbum.me/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/JENNY-SAVILLE-GLEN-LUCHFORD2.jpg

Just What is it?

This week we were shown a piece of artwork called 'Just What Is It That Makes Today's Homes So Different, So Appealing?', by a designer called Richard Hamilton. This piece is a collage that makes up an American home and uses some unusual visuals, such as no ceiling, just straight up to the moon and the naked woman who has got a lampshade on her head. We were shown potential influences that Richard Hamilton could of had in order to create that work, which mainly seemed to be just about what was happening in America at that time. Then we had to look at how people had used his work, by either directly using it and changing it slightly, or using it as inspiration to create something similar.

Just What Is It That Makes Today's Home So Different, So Appealing?, Richard Hamilton, 1956 [1]

Our task was to then find another piece of artwork and look at the potential influences that the artist may have had, then look at how it has been used to recreate it, directly or through influence. The piece which I have chosen to look at is called 'The Scream' by Edvard Munch. This is a very memorable piece which which has very textured lines and colours, but the main focus is on the alien type figure that is holding its face as if it is screaming.

The Scream, Edvard Munch, 1893 [2]

The first piece I believe could have influenced The Scream is a piece called Starry Night by Van Gogh. I think that this may have been an influence on The Scream as they use very similar brush strokes that are over exaggerated. The lines are thick and the colour is quite solid. Although they do not look the same, I believe that Edvard Munch will have been influenced just on the brush strokes and then went on with his own ideas.

Starry Night, Van Gogh, 1889 [3]

Another potential influence is a French artist called Paul Gauguin who Edvard Munch himself said he was inspired by. One piece I have found which I believe will have been one of the main influences of The Scream is called The 'Yellow Christ'. I believe he was inspired by the representation of the human form and the colours in this painting. Also the things in most detail are in the foreground of the image and the areas in the background are in much lesser detail. In The Yellow Christ the trees become much lighter and simple and in The Scream the 2 dark figures are merely just outlines in comparison to the alien like figure in the foreground.

The Yellow Christ, Paul Gauguin, 1889 [4]

Now I am moving onto artwork that may have been influenced by The Scream. I am going to look at a series of humorous remakes of The Scream from the likes of The Simpsons, Spongebob and Batman. You can see below how his artwork has been reproduced, using the exact same layout, direction of lines and colour.

The Simpsons Scream [5]

Spongebob Scream [6]

The Joker Scream [7]

Boubou Design Scream [8]

Nuclear Scream [9]

The Image by boubou design is the one which looks least like that of the original, but I must say that I do not really like it, there is something about the layout of the original and how it is produced that makes it special. Artists and designers could try to reproduce The Scream in their own way as many times as they wanted and it still would not be as effective as the original.

One other piece I am going to look at is an awareness campaign that uses part of The Scream in a very shocking and unusual way. This poster shows the back of a young child, to which the face within The Scream painting has been embedded onto the back of the child to look like scratches. This shows how the influence has been shown in a negative way, but for a positive purpose.

Child Health Scream, Child Healthcare Foundation, 2008 [10]

To conclude I have found that there is many different ways to be inspired or inspire others. I would like to do both in my career, I am being inspired everyday by work I find online, when I am out and about, when I go to galleries and when I have to look at work for University. Edvard Munch's The Scream is a great example of this, to which his work is still being remade to this present day as he continues to inspire, although he is no longer alive.

Image Reference:
[1]http://uk.phaidon.com/agenda/art/picture-galleries/2010/march/23/this-is-tomorrow-the-work-of-richard-hamilton/?idx=2&idx=2
[2]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/The_Scream.jpg
[3]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Van_Gogh_-_Starry_Night_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg/758px-Van_Gogh_-_Starry_Night_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg
[4]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Gauguin_Il_Cristo_giallo.jpg
[5]http://unrealitymag.bcmediagroup.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/simpsons_art_1.jpg
[6]http://cdn.pophangover.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/The-Scream.jpg
[7]http://manvsart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/The-Joker_Raul_Aguirre.jpg
[8]http://bouboudesign.deviantart.com/art/The-Scream-Remake-192415499
[9]http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J4yChKCjpno/Upp_C5LppTI/AAAAAAAAABI/Fbgs5xyCQ08/s1600/3.jpg
[10]http://files1.coloribus.com/files/adsarchive/part_1340/13400205/file/child-health-foundation-the-scream-small-67556.jpg

Classical & Romantic Art

This week we looked at Classical & Romantic Art. I am going to be looking at different examples of both classical and romantic art and comparing them to each other. I am also going to take a little look at Gothic art and compare that with the classical and romantic art.

First I am going to look at Neo-Classicism (A form of classical art), which appeared between the 1700's and 1800's and the paintings created came from the inspiration of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. This period was like a second coming of classical art as it had mainly began in the 14th Century in Greece and Rome. This artwork was what had been getting painted for many, many years and was typically the norm. This artwork seems to be much more formal to that of Romantic Art. I am going to look at a few examples of classical art below.

The Girl With the Pearl Earring, Vermeer, 1665-1667 [1]

Poem of the Soul - Sunrays, Louis Janmot, 1854 [2]

The Lady of Shalott, John William Waterhouse, 1888 [3]

Primavera, Botticelli, 1477-1482 [4]

You can see in Classical art that they all look very similar, they use the same realistic style to show innocence and beauty. It just so happens that I have selected to show all include only females, however the same style would have been used for a male. In all of them you can see that the faces don't really have any emotion, they just look very straight faced, but I suppose that adds emphasis to the paintings. Moving on from Classical I am going to move onto Romantic art.

Now looking at Romantic art, this art form started to occur in the early 1800's, to which they looked into nature for their inspiration. This art form was against any form of industrialisation, to which this was forming a large hatred through the Industrial Revolution in Britain. Within this era the steam engine was invented and there is one artist who created Romantic artwork against the industrial revolution. His name is 'Joseph Mallord William Turner'. The first piece of artwork I am going to look at is called 'Rain, Steam and Speed', which I have previously looked at under my perspective title. I believe that although it doesn't initially look like romantic art, maybe Turner is trying to hide the natural beauty on purpose as some sort of message about how the industrial revolution and the invention of steam engines is killing and hiding away nature. The painting shows a steam train travelling across a bridge, but the whole image seems to be very unclear, which I believe what steam would do, it would block your view from what is behind.

Rain, Steam Speed, J. M. W. Turner, 1844 [5]

You can see how a dark and mucky orange colour has been used to hide the nice blue sky that is peering through either side of the 'steam'. Now onto another piece of his work called 'Fishermen at Sea', where he takes his focus off of the industrial revolution and looks at nature. In this painting he has created a darkening and negative mood through the rough sea he has painted and the small wooden boats that are trying to stay afloat. He has added dark clouds where the moonlight is peering through and shining down onto where the small boats are. I believe this is don't to create focus onto the danger and reality of nature.

Fishermen at Sea, J. M. W. Turner, 1794 [6]

I am now just going to look at one example of Gothic art. This piece is called 'The Nightmare' and was produced by a man called Henry Fuseli. It consists of what looks to be a deceased woman in a white dress laying across a chair or bed. It is believed to be an impression of the woman potentially having a nightmare, if she were to be alive, as there is an unusual demon like creature sat on top of her. Also there is a black unusual looking horse in the background to the left, which looks like it is creeping out of the shadows, this makes me believe further that it is a representation of a nightmare.

The Nightmare, Henry Fuselli, 1782 [7]

I have shown examples of Classic, Romantic and Gothic art from around the same time, to compare them to each other. You can see the differences in the three styles, but I can also see why artists moved from Classical, to that of Romantic and Gothic. They will have wanted to get themselves known for being good artists. I believe that classical artwork, with its formality, seems to be very structured and in one word, 'perfect'. Whereas Romantic art wants to try different things, very well proven by J. M. W. Turner as it looks very different to that of Classical art. Then finally onto Gothic, Gothic art seems to have elements of both Classic and Romantic. This is because it looks like a formal painting, especially in this example above, and has elements of surprise in the use of mythological creatures. I myself prefer the Romantic and Gothic art as they seem to have more meaning behind them, they look more textured, which I like in a painting. However there is nothing wrong with a Classical painting which has taken the human form and composition perfectly into account.

Image Reference:
[1]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Meisje_met_de_parel.jpg
[2]http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Le_poeme_de_lAme-13-Louis_Janmot-MBA_Lyon-IMG_0496.jpg
[3]http://www.artble.com/imgs/1/1/4/77882/the_lady_of_shalott.jpg
[4]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Botticelli-primavera.jpg
[5]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Rain_Steam_and_Speed_the_Great_Western_Railway.jpg
[6]http://www.artofmanliness.com/2011/03/03/the-basics-of-art-the-romantic-period/
[7]http://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/exhibition/gothic-nightmares-fuseli-blake-and-romantic-imagination/gothic

Surrealism

Surrealism is largely about fantasy, mixing in reality with fantasy. Surrealism first came about in the early 1920's in Western Europe, mainly France and Germany. From the first creation of surrealism, it soon spread across the Globe for all artists and designers to enjoy or contribute with. Paris was recognised as being the centre and the beginning of the surrealist art movement and was started by french poet 'Andre Breton' with the publication of his 'Manifesto of Surrealism.

Manifesto of Surrealism, Andre Breton, 1924 [1]

The book itself doesn't look very surreal, but that will be because it is a Manifesto, although I was hoping for it to have a slight surrealist style on the front cover. Surrealist art is simply taking the natural/normal world and everything around us and making it look unnatural/strange. They can have no true meaning other than to look different. There were many artists involved in this movement, but the ones that are most remembered are the likes of Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso, Joan Miro, Man Ray, Jean Arp and Rene Margritte. The surrealist movement lasted for around 40 years when it slowly disappeared in the late 1960's.

The task this week was to look at surrealism, how it influenced advertising and to find the artist who caused the influence. First I am going to look at some artists work that came from the beginning of surrealism. One memorable piece of artwork which you should know and is called 'This is not a pipe'. This was produced by Rene Magritte in 1929 and is a very simple example of surrealism as it obviously shows an image of a pipe, but the typography describes it as not being a pipe. Simple yet effective.

This is not a pipe, Rene Magritte, 1929 [2]

I have found an example where this artwork was used as the main influence by a company called 'Allianz', which specialise in insurance. They have displayed a roof tile, saying this is not a roof tile, which they have just replaced the pipe and changed the description. The layout is the same, apart from the advertisement includes a smaller description located at the bottom of the poster which explains what the advertisement is about. It says 'This is a painful bump provocateur', which I think works very well. They have don't the same again, but used a banana, to which you can probably guess that the smaller explanation says, 'This is a malicious back bruiser', as they have played on the perception that banana peels are very slippery. I like both of these examples of using surrealist art by Rene Margritte as an influence.

This is not a roof tile, Atletico International Advertising, 2006 [3]

This is not a banana, Atletico International Advertising, 2006 [4]

The next artwork I am going to look at is called 'The Temptation of St. Anthony' by Salvador Dali. This painting is very surreal, as the animals shown have extremely long legs which typically puts their heads in the clouds. The animals are also carrying oversized objects on their backs, which are like some type of golden temple. Dali has used the realism of animals and over exaggerated on them, which I really like. I would like to understand the thought process and what goes through the minds of creatives such as Dali when they come to creating pieces such as the one shown below.

The Temptation of St. Anthony, Salvador Dali, 1946 [5]

The Persistence of Memory, Salvador Dali, 1931 [6]

From these surrealist pieces created during the career of Dali, the car manufacturer Volkswagen went to a design company, who used his work as inspiration in the creation of some of their advertisements, which I believe work well in todays world.

Volkswagen Polo Blue Motion: Dali, DDB Advertising [7]

The advertisement above was produced by a German Design company known as 'DDB'. They used the work of Dali as their main inspiration to over exaggerate on some things, as you can see the man is very oversized, as is his arm. The mans tears are creating a large collection of water, the oil pumps in the background have flowers growing out of them, etc. The flowers growing out of them are linking with the fact that the vehicle which has been advertised is good on fuel, which links to where the fuel gauge is shown to be full. The design of the fuel gauge in the advertisements comes from another of Dali's work, which is called 'The Persistence of Time', where all of the clock faces shown in his painting have become liquified and are seen to be following the shape of the floor or hanging over a branch. In the advertisement they have used a belt to squeeze the fuel gauge together, possibly to signify that the car has a smaller fuel tank because it has better fuel economy.

Now I am going to look at artists who don't particularly have any links with the work of previous artists, but they have used some slight inspiration from all of them, along with their own initiative, to create these outcomes. First I am going to look at an advertisement by a company called 'Lifebuoy', which is a company who specialise in germ protection, through the sales of soaps, hand washes and many other products. In this advertisement they were trying to get across that whatever you touch, is in fact what you are eating. You can see in the first image below that thee is a cat that has been shaped into a croissant, which is implying that if you touch a cat then go straight to eat a croissant without waning your hands, then you are typically eating the cat. A very strange way to put across the idea of making sure you wash your hands before you eat, yet again one which I believe will have been very successful for 'Lifebuoy'.

Cat Croissant, You Eat What You Touch Advertisement, Lifebuoy, Nemesis Pictures [8]

Hamster Cupcake, You Eat What You Touch Advertisement, Lifebuoy, Nemesis Pictures [9]

Dog Bread, You Eat What You Touch Advertisement, Lifebuoy, Nemesis Pictures [10]

You can see the humour within these designs, well I find them both amazing and funny, seeing the hamster all bunched up as a cupcake and the dog all bunched up like a loaf of bread. These are one of my favourite surrealist advertisements that I have come across. The work was produced by a company called Nemesis Pictures, which they should really credit themselves for this work.

The next advertisement I am going to look at is called 'Help Yourself' which was designed for CVV (Suicide Prevention Center). The work is very simple and the main part of the design doesn't include any drawings, it is basically the shape of someone cut out of the main paper, to look like they are holding onto themselves and to stop them from falling down to the floor. They have used the negative space and positive space excellently within this design, which is unlike any of the other surrealist work I have seen. They have thought outside the original box, and again outside of the next box. Below is the 2 examples of the advertisement, one showing a female outline and the other showing a male outline as anybody can commit suicide.

Help Yourself (Female), CVV, Leo Burnett [11]

Help Yourself (Male), CVV, Leo Burnett [12]

Through the simplicity of the design they have got their point across very well. You can see how the figure looks to be trying to help itself, for the shocking imagery, and then the information is shown above very clearly as there is nothing else on the design. Another very good design idea which was produced by a design company called 'Leo Burnett'.

To finish I would lie to say how although the main surrealist art movement was supposed to have ended in the 1960's, you can still see in todays world how artists and designers are using this to their advantage. Above I have shown examples where artists and designers have used the artists who created surrealism to influence their work, and also artists and designers who have used their own initiative to think further into surrealism and what they can do with the technologies of today.

Image References:
[1]http://adsoftheworld.com/media/print/mcdonalds_filetofish_fish_bowl?size=_original
[2]http://collections.lacma.org/node/239578
[3]https://artisticusj.wordpress.com/category/surrealism-2/
[4]https://artisticusj.wordpress.com/category/surrealism-2/
[5]http://webneel.com/i/0/1-the-temptation-surreal-painting-by-salvador-dali/09-2013/d?n=9210
[6]http://uploads5.wikiart.org/images/salvador-dali/the-persistence-of-memory-1931.jpg
[7]http://adsoftheworld.com/media/print/volkswagen_polo_blue_motion_dali
[8]http://coilhouse.net/2008/09/weekly-ad-uncoiling-lifebuoy-handwash/
[9]http://coilhouse.net/2008/09/weekly-ad-uncoiling-lifebuoy-handwash/
[10]http://webneel.com/design/daily/You%20eat%20what%20you%20touch-Lifebuoy-dog-toast/0/0/You%20eat%20what%20you%20touch-Lifebuoy-dog-toast-/jpg?nid=8174
[11]http://powerusers.co.in/30-superbly-done-creative-ads/
[12]http://www.dailydesigninspiration.com/diverse/adv/leoburnett/Help-Yourself3-o.jpg
[13]
[14]

Globalisation

This week we looked at the matter of globalisation, we have to look for examples of globalisation and how art & design has contributed to, rejected or commented on it. Globalisation has always been there, but with advancements in technology and design, it has been able to massively increase within the last century. Through these advancements, the consumer has been made to want things more than they need them. One way to keep the consumer hooked on wanting the products, is by making new ones very regularly... as who wants the old one when you can have the new one. Its basic idea is to make the consumer want to be individual and modern. One current example of excellent globaliation is the apple iPhone. It is now onto the 10th model of its continuing sequence to which you will be able to see the advancements in the design to make it look more modern and new, but being similar in the styling.

Apple IPhone 2g (left) and Apple IPhone 6 plus (right) [1]

You can see that the button and speaker ports are in the same place, the corners are round and the application layout is the same. However the IPhone 6 plus is much larger in size, is white in colour, has extra buttons on the side and also has a front facing camera. Changing things slightly makes the product new, so if they change one thing each time, the consumer is going to want the newer version.

Other companies such as Coca Cola, Pepsi, Disney, Nike, Adidas and McDonald's are examples of successful globalisation. They understand that they need to sell the idea of something to make the consumer want it, rather than to just sell a product. McDonald's menu is very simple, but too keep the consumer interested, they often have limited edition items on the menu for limited times, such as the recently reintroduced 'Mcrib' in the UK. McDonald's is clever in understanding how to adapt to different cultures across the world, as they don't have the same menu in every country and their restaurants are displayed differently as you will see below by the following images.

McNoodles [2]

McCurry Pan [3]

McNurnburger [4]

Greek Mac [5]

Bacon & Potato Pie [6]

You can see from these few examples, anywhere across the world the many food products created by the food franchise to cater for the different cultures, none of the foods above have been sold in McDonald's in the UK, which goes to show you how many different products they have had to create. The real word to use to describe this is 'Glocalisation'. It is a combination of Globalisation and localisation, to show how it is for a certain area.

Now I am going to look at some artists and how they have contributed to or rejected globalisation. The first artist I am going to look at is called Wang Guangyi who created a piece called 'Great Criticism - Coca Cola. This showed illustrated people that look to have been drawn with propaganda in mind, especially with links to china and Communism. It is implying that Coca Cola is like the boss of Communism, and is working through the use of globalisation and smart sales techniques to make you want the product. This artwork is a great and intelligent example of rejection towards globalisation.

Great Criticism - Coca Cola, Wang Guangyi, 1994 [7]

The next artist that I am going to look at is called Jonathan Barnbrook. He has created many different pieces on globalisation, but the first piece I am going to look at includes globalisation and americanisation. It uses his main skill of typography to say 'America's own weapons of mass destruction', this is shown in a pink colour to come forward in the design. But in the background in a more subtle and less recognisable blue, is companies logo's such as 'McDonald's, 'Starbuck's', 'GAP', 'Disney', 'Nike', 'Coca Cola' and 'Hilton'. I believe that he has made the logo's in the blue colour so they are hidden, just like the large scale of globalisation is hidden from everyone across the world. This is another very good example of a rejection towards not only globalisation, but also americanisation.

America's Own Weapons of Mass Destruction, Jonathan Barnbrook, 2003 [8]

Now to look at contributions towards globalisation. This can be in any form of Advertising or Marketing, as this is being used to draw in the consumer to want the product. The advertisement I am looking at is a poster for McDonald's. The advertisement shows one of it's products on the menu, called a 'Filet-O-Fish'. To demonstrate the food, a group of artists have come together to produce something which I believe is amazing. It displays the main outline of the fully constructed 'Filet-O-Fish' as being a transparent fish bowl which is flu with water, which inside of it there is a little goldfish. I believe this is a very god piece of advertising, maybe not so much in the idea that they are making out that their 'Filet-O-Fish' contains a goldfish, which people should understand is very unlikely, but in how they make it look so innocent. They are selling an idea to the consumer, not the actual product, as this differs from just showing the product, it aces the consumer want it because it is interesting. I believe this to be a very positive example of contribution towards globalisation.

McDonald's Filet-O-Fish Poster Advrtisement, Leo Burnett, 2011 [9]

To finish off on the subject of globalisation, I can say that I believe it is taking over the world and that there is no way to stop it. It is like  cycle, the big companies provide you with a job, and with the money you earn you are drawn into wanting to buy products from these big companies, which you are then supporting and funding globalisation to grow and grow. You need a job to be able to survive and the large companies are smart in selling you an idea, to which you give in and buy that idea. The only way to stop or slow down globalisation is to stop buying their smart ideas, but that is very unlikely to happen anytime soon, as society thrives off of it.

Image Reference:
[1]https://photo.tinhte.vn/store/2014/10/2619531_tinhte.vn-iphone6plus-vs-iphne2g-1.jpg
[2]http://firstwefeast.com/eat/craziest-international-mcdonalds-menu-items/s/mcnoodles/
[3]http://firstwefeast.com/eat/craziest-international-mcdonalds-menu-items/s/mccurry-pan/
[4]http://firstwefeast.com/eat/craziest-international-mcdonalds-menu-items/s/mcnurnburger/
[5]https://metrouk2.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/greek-mac.jpg
[6]http://i.huffpost.com/gadgets/slideshows/275485/slide_275485_2000394_free.jpg
[7]http://www.tate.org.uk/research/publications/tate-papers/somewhere-and-nowhere-between-modernity-and-tradition-towards
[8]http://drmartinsurvey2.wikispaces.com/Jonathan+Barnbrook
[9]http://adsoftheworld.com/media/print/mcdonalds_filetofish_fish_bowl?size=_original

Art & Visual Communications In Perspective

I am going to be looking at how perspective is used to convey deep space/openness, compared with a confined space and how these have an effect on the visual perception and emotion?

The first person I am going to look at is 'Aleksandr Rodchenko', who is a Russian Photographer/Graphic Designer. Im going to look at an image he took called 'Fire Escape'. This was the first time that someone had changed the angle of photography in order to create a great perspective. You can see the man on the ladders, then you look up the ladders to see how tall the building is and the scale of it. It also looks very interesting, especially how the lines of the ladders look to be getting closer and closer together, even though in reality they are not. A good thing to do in relation to this image, is look for a very long straight road which you can see all of the way down, it will give the same effect as the ladder does in this image. Things which are further away appear to be smaller and closer together than they actually are. At the bottom of the photograph it looks very open as you can see the gaps between the steps on the ladder, however the space becomes much more compact at the top of the image as the steps on the ladder get closer and closer, which stopes the steps having the lighter coloured gaps, making the image much darker and confined. Obviously the effect would differ if the image was in colour, I personally believe it would not be as effective as having a monochrome contrast.

Aleksandr Rodchenki - Fire Escape (With A Man) Photograph [1]

Next I am going to look at a painting by 'Claude Monet' called 'Rain, Steam and Speed', which was painted in 1844. It is quite abstract in how the objects in the painting are not defined. You can make out that there is a train coming towards you across a bridge, but then the rest of the painting is undefinable. Al of the colours are mixed together to create an effect of the rain/steam. However in addition to that, as you cannot see some of the train, it creates a sense of speed. As if to say that it is going so fast that you can only see what is close to you and that through perspective the train is too long and travelling too fast for you to see it properly. The only other recognisable part is in the background, which is another bridge. Although only parts of the painting are understandable, it is still a beautiful painting which I believe conveys the emotion of being powerful and fast. I also really like the contrast between the background being a blue/cold colour, with the orange/red colours dominating the foreground to show like they are breaking through the cold blue to get to the front.

Claude Monet - Rain, Steam and Speed, 1844 [2]

I am now going to look at another photographer called 'Bill Brandt'. This photograph is called 'Ear on the beach', which was created in 1957. You can understand the slightly abstract feel to this image through the use of perspective. Normally you would not expect to see someones ear at the bottom of the photograph. Naturally the focus would be the cliffs in the background. However I do like how Bill has created this piece. It would have been interesting to see what the outcome of this photograph would have been like if the ear was replaced with other body parts, such as a foot, hand, tongue, etc. I think that the use of the ear also helps to make the image feel very open as you can understand the scale of the cliff in comparison to the ear. I also really like when the photograph was taken as the sunlight creates great lighting on the beach and cliffs.

Bill Brandt - Ear on the beach, 1957 [3]

Dolly Zoom
In films, a new way to add emphasis, particularly in horror/thriller movies, was to use a technique called dolly zoom. Dolly Zoom was a good way to create an emphasising perspective. You basically would move the position of the camera forwards whilst zooming out, as the movement forward would counteract the zooming out, so you were basically not getting any closer or further away to the eye, but realistically you were getting closer. Below is a very good example of dolly zoom from a french film called 'La Haine'. You can see how with in the matter of a few seconds the scene goes from having a very open and wide feel, to a very closed and concentrated feel. This is a very effective way in which to entice the audience.

Image Reference:
[1]http://arttattler.com/archivealexanderrodchenko.html
[2]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Rain_Steam_and_Speed_the_Great_Western_Railway.jpg
[3]http://c300221.r21.cf1.rackcdn.com/seaford-east-sussex-coast-1957-brandt-1362767498_b.jpg