Contextual Studies - Week 1 - Semiotics

Contextual Studies Research Task

Tuesday, 22 Sept

Choose a single magazine advertisement and analyze the intended message. What design elements and ideas does it use? The questions below are a short guide to areas you might consider when analyzing your chosen example.

Write approx. 1⁄2 a page of notes and bring this along with an A4 copy of the advertisement to the first week’s Contextual Studies session.

•  What are the important objects/images within the advertisement? What might they mean or signify? How are they used by the designer? How does their placement within the image influence the message? e.g. type, colour, illustration, photographic image. 


•  Does the advertisement reinforce of counter the expectations of recognised advertising language, e.g. a fashion advertisement may have an ‘attractive’ model in a glamourous location; a family car advertisement may be collecting children from school or be shown outside a supermarket. 


•  Who created the advertisement? Try to consider all of those involved in the process. How might their background or aims influence the advertisement? 


•  For whom was the advertisement intended? Look carefully at the clues and try to be as detailed as you can. Clues can include: other ads in the same magazine, the type of articles in the magazine, the price range of the product and the individual images in the advertisement. 


•  Ask family or friends if they think the message or the meaning of the advertisement is different to your own interpretation? If it is different, why might this be? 


•  How would you advertise the products or brand in a different way? For further questions refer to, A D.I.Y. Semiotic Analysis: Daniel Chandler 
(Link)

 
You will also find the rest of Daniel Chandler’s website (Semiotics for Beginners) helpful in developing a stronger understanding of the Study of Semiotics. (Link)

This advert is very different to any normal advert. There are no photos and the whole thing is in black and white. All of the information on this advert is put into black boxes, which plays with the hierarchy a bit. I did find it a bit hard to see what it was about, I had to read all the information instead of the message being instantly clear. Having the whole advert in black and white makes it really stand out from the rest of the book which is very colourful. The type is all very modern and only uses san-serif fonts. The typeface for the logo and the typeface for the copy are very similar which also doesn't help with the hierarchy. 

This advert doesn't follow the expectations of recognised visual language. It is very different and quirky but this suits the target market well. The main difference is that there are no photos or animations at all. There is no information about what films would be shown or what films have won awards. It is all a bit of a mystery, which adds to the excitement of the film festival. 

This advert is targeted at people who already enjoy film and like to keep up with the industry. It has been printed in a magazine called ‘Little White Lies’. This specialises in movies and films. The magazine costs £6, which is expensive, but it is beautifully designed and laid out. This is obviously something people would collect and keep. I think this advert is intended at both men and women because the rest of the magazine caters to both. It must be aimed at people who are willing to pay more to see a film or go to an event. 

I really like this advert overall! If I were to change anything I would make the intended message clearer. The position of the logo and the fact the copy has been put in such a similar font makes the hierarchy a bit difficult. Other than that I really like the black and white and the rest of the lay out.