OUGD401 | Advertisement analysis

I am aiming to analyse different kinds of advertisements and identity themes within these related to gender. I am aiming to find out if the way gender is used to advertise various products is consistent or varies between products/services.
I feel that fashion and beauty adverts are all very similar in that they usually have a sexual theme. with males showing dominance. The photography is rarely left without digital manipulation. Software is primarily used to edit body image, fitting it to the standards of the industry, no blemishes are to be seen. With this manipulation and sexual suggestion, it gives the public the idea that you are only sexually attractive if you meet the physical standards set by the industry.  As you can see from the adverts below, the models featured tend to either be wearing nothing or very little - again supporting the idea that sex sells, often this nudity has very little relevance to the product but this technique remains successful in selling a product through adverts.

HOUSEHOLD

Although Gauntlett expressed that he felt advertising agencies no longer use gender stereotypes in advertising apart from the exceptions such as iceland, the stereotypes in my opinion still have a strong presence particularly in household related advertising. Cleaning adverts very rarely feature a male, promoting the 1950s stereotype of housewives. You can see in the images below that children promote the stereotype that women are the mothers whilst men are the breadwinners. Even when a male is introduced in character form (Mr Muscle) he is seen as the powerful one, who is able to tackle anything he comes up against, he is muscular and strong even though this is a cartoon this remains a subtle hint. We find the woman helplessly unable to clean until the male character comes to her aid. I feel that the cartoon approach is aiming to come across as friendly whilst hiding its stereotypes underneath. The issues are even prominent in food advertising, this does not always contain people, but when it does, the women is commonly advertised as being in charge of food, as you can see from the Burger King advert below she is advertised as being more prepared to give food to her children - promoting the stereotype of women being the only parent figuire as well as the cook.

OUGD401 | AdBusters Research

AdBusters describes itself as a "magazine concerned about the erosion of our physical and cultural environments by commercial forces [...] Ultimately Adbusters is an ecological magazine, dedicated to examining the relationship between human beings and their physical and mental environment". 

The magazine (and others who submit work) create spoof adds, which are either comical or serious, either way they prove very strong points about the products being advertised or the people featured in them. I want to analyse some of the techniques used by AdBusters to see if this can inform my own practical work. 

I took some of the spoof ads that inspired me most from the website. Each and every one is just as hard hitting. Firstly, a spoof add for cigarettes with the caption "If it wasn't for cigarettes, I wouldn't have cancer" a women poses innocently in the background. What is interesting about this ad is that the words can so easily be changed to a positive"if it was for THIS PRODUCT, I wouldn't have THIS BENEFIT". If the slogan changes, the same picture can be used with the same effect. This illustrates the power of photography, but more so the power of how a slogan effects the way we read an image.

A similar technique is used in this fast food spoof add, whereby the slogan completely changes how the image is read. Typically, the caption would be boasting of flavour, ingredients and taste, however here we see this replaced with a shocking statistic "52% fat" which is instantly off-putting.  The brutal honesty has a strong effect on the viewer. 

This Absolut Vodka add has a similar honesty to it but it edits the name of the brand rather than using a slogan, this was part of a series which replaced the word vodka with a consequence of drinking, and illustrated this in the shape of the product e.g. here we see a noose in the shape of the bottle itself. This is effectively replacing the product with the truth. 

Moving on to a more fashion focussed spoof add, for Calvin Klein. Playing on the words that could or are used for perfumes and aftershaves. Firstly "Reality" this could easily be used as a perfume name, however paired with an unattractive hairy chest, the advert isn't quite so convincing! My favourite spoof ad had to be "Escape...from Calvin Klein", the play on words here is really successful in that it has humour but also delivers a strong message to keep away from the tricks of designer branding. 

To gain a greater understanding of Adbusters, I analysed the latest copy of the magazine in the library. The visual theme of the issue was an arrangement of scribbles across the content. As well as some very brutal articles. The theme here seems to be honesty and facing the facts in order to encourage others to change the state of the world. The magazine itself was quite heavy, using a very thick matte stock, I found this quite unusual for a magazine but I liked how the issue seemed to break the rules. In terms of graphic design the magazine continued the rule breaking in a post modern style, comic sans even makes several appearances. The approach of the magazine as a whole was very useful to me in that it has shown me a new approach to my own practical work in relation to my essay. 

OUGD401 | Study Task 5

Based on technique, content and communication, extract the practical issues/aspects surrounding your chosen field of interest : 

Comment on how you will engage with each of the following aspects of practice-based research (highlighting opportunities for primary research).

RESEARCH

Current advertisements which focus on gender/people. 

Problems associated with adverts

Establish Target Market

What is the average person?

Potential products to advertise e.g. clothes

Adbusters

ANALYSIS

Photoshop editing 

Which adverts aren't stereotypical? Why?

Techniques used by Adbusters. 

How clothes are typically advertised. 

EXPLORATION

How can you sell a product without promoting stereotypes? Is this still effective? 

Exaggerate problems to make the issues obvious? 

Ridiculous photoshop manipulation, emphasising the techniques used are fake/unrealistic.

Can my adverts work as a series?

EVALUATION

Does the product solve the problem?

TESTING 

Questionnaire for general public. 

Is work successful? 

Does it communicate the right ideas?