After deciding to focus my practical work on a campaign I have explored a few options but have not yet generated a solid idea. I have been working on a more general target audience, this being the general public who view advertisements - in particular those who are more likely to view fashion and beauty adverts (As this is where most of the issues lie, and because the images are easier to source). I also consider the adverts to be partially aimed at companies that create these kind of ads as well as advertising companies in a bid to challenge their current way of working.
Through critiques and tutor help, it has been advised that I explore both the positives and the negatives of advertising, rather than being quick to criticise the adverts. So I am considering creating a campaign that starts a conversation or debate about the issues rather than simply criticising them.
Before focusing my aim of starting a conversation, I had been working on one of my previous ideas #HonestAds. This idea involved taking an existing advert and explaining that the advert will not make you into the ideal representation of men and women in the advertisements but explain the blunt truth about what the product actually does. For example, a men's aftershave will make you smell nice, but it won't give you muscles, success or sexual attractiveness that the figures appear to have in the images. I decided to generate this idea into a social media campaign using the hash tag to encourage conversation online, however this idea tackles the negative aspects of advertising more.
I tried to have a serious at first tone-of-voice, but followed by a more humorous sentence revealing the truth. Although I was reasonably happy with this concept, I have been struggling to bring the design together. I decided to use Didot, a serif typeface commonly used in fashion and beauty advertising, it seems to blend into the image more which is what I wanted to achieve. My aim was to make the advert appear normal at first, but on closer inspection you realise the truth behind it.
Despite this aim, I feel that I was unsuccessful. It was difficult to place the text in a balanced way across the image and there seemed to be a disconnection between the two - as if the text had been slapped right on to the photograph. The adverts as a whole were too text heavy. I plan to receive further feedback on this to decide whether the idea is worth developing.
I then tried to focus my idea some more, considering a particular element of advertising that I wanted to focus on. I began focusing on sexualisation and the concept of the male gaze. I took the well known and hopefully recognised Wonder Bra (hello boys) advert image and began to experiment with placing text on to this. I felt that this was an appropriate image as it is so recognisable and highlights the main issues of sexualisation in advertising. Despite the image being for a lingerie advert, the 'Hello Boys' caption suggests that she is a sexual object for man to use. Her pose and the expression on her face supports that she is willing do to whatever the man may ask of her, immediately placing man above woman.
I chose a vivid red as this contrasted against the the greyscale image, making it stand out and catch the eyes of passers by. Red is also an alarming colour, which I feel is appropriate to alarm the public (and advertising agencies) of the issues. I also began by using Futura as this typeface is legible, so the public could read it easy from a distance. The typeface is also modern, which is a sign of how the advertising industry needs to face the modern world and adjust to it.
I began with a simple question "Why is this nation so obsessed with sex?" but I felt that this did not clearly communicate the campaign would be about advertising and the meaning seemed equally unclear. "Sex sells" was more directed at advertising, but the achievements of using this would be minimal. I don't think anything would change as a result or much conversation would be raised. I then tried to focus more on gender specifically to relate back to the original question of gender representation. I felt that by asking the viewer a question, the advert would be more engaging and more likely to raise debate. So I moved on to captions such as "Do we really believe this is what gender is?" and "Gender is about more than sex" and I eventually came to "Is this what we call gender equality?". I felt that the issue of gender equality is one of the biggest issues in advertising and covers many of the issues that branch of from this, such as sexualisation and stereotypes, so I think focussing on gender equality will achieve the most. Although I do want more of a conversation to be raised, I think it is important that people widely agree that there is a problem, so my questions are more leaned towards the negatives.
I felt that the open question "Is this what we call gender equality?" was the most successful caption, so I began to develop the designs and consider the aims of the design as a whole and whether it achieved these. I decided to experiment with a red filter on the image for several reasons. Firstly, I think it is more eye catching and visually interesting than black and white because a pop of red is more likely to stand out in public than grey. The mood also feels less serious and sad, but more stimulating - which I feel is important to raise questions. I experimented with filters that gave a softer red and some that gave a harsher more intense red. I am unsure which to use at this moment. I feel that the harsh red makes people feel more inclined to join the debate and be active about their opinions, whereas the softer red is more passive, encouraging the viewer to ask questions. I feel it comes across as less critical.
I felt that Futura did not stand out enough against the image and the edges were too sharp and harsh. I felt that a softer but equally legible typeface would be better for posing the question rather than appearing as a criticism. I chose Monteserret bold because of its professional feel, as well as ticking the boxes for encouraging debate not criticism.
I began some basic work on type at the bottom which would explain the meaning of the campaign/advert. I used "The misrepresentation of gender in adverisitng has gone of far too long. It's time we did something about it...Join the conversation #isthisgenderequality" at first. Looking back, I want to encourage conversation not criticism, so perhaps just "Join the conversation" is more appropriate. I placed the hashtag in a similar red, to make it stand out from the rest of the text, so the social media connection is more easily made and so more conversation will happen (hopefully).
Looking closer at the image, I began to wonder whether it communicated the right messages. I was unsure if it communicated anything about advertising specifically, and whether the connections could be made between the image and how it shows inequality. The original Wonder Bra advert definitely shows inequality, promoting the idea than women are a sexual object for men to use. I am unsure if this is communicated without the caption "Hello Boys". I had planned to create similar posters for men, originally planning to use men in a similar situation with less clothes, but a student suggested I show a man in a suit as this communicates the success, power and dominance that men appear to have in the adverts. I am currently considering whether to have separate adverts for both men and women, or use two images in one. Two images in one communicates the message more clearly, but it is more difficult to execute. Putting the images together in an aesthetically pleasing way is proving difficult. So I plan to explore image placement further.
Finally, looking back at my research many of the campaigns had logos. I decided to create a logo to see if this would work on my images. I thought I would call the campaign Gender Equality? I felt the question mark symbolises that it is a conversation starter than than a criticism. What what useful was that there is an equal size within a capital E, so highlighting this reinforced the message of equality.
I tried this on some of the adverts I created, but this logo crowded the designs and was inconsistent with the rest of the design. I am unsure if a logo is appropriate or needed, but I feel that my campaign can be successful without one.
I then began to develop a potential website that could go with my campaign. This would be a reference point for anything related to the campaign such as the aims/meanings for it, any upcoming events, news and how the public can get involved.
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| I used the He For She campaign website to help direct my website design |
POSTER MOCK UPS -
BRIEF
Design a campaign which starts a conversation about gender equality in advertising. Your campaign can be for or against advertising, or even in between.
BACKGROUND/CONSIDERATIONS
Are you aiming to persuade,argue, inform, challenge or otherwise?
What can you create as a part of your campaign e.g. posters, website etc
How will you communicate your message?
What will your message be?
How can you get people involved?
MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS/DELIVERABLES
Minimum of 1 poster (min A4 size)
Critical Journal - Supporting blogposts.
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