post ww2 - young people now have freedom and disp. inc. to dress how they want and pursue their own styles.
subculture - a group of people with a culture whether distinct or hidden (mainly hidden) which differenciates them from the larger culture to which they belong.
e.g. steam-punk
- dog town and z boys -
tells story of how skateing was born and evolved. skating cloths same for girls and boys at that time - lots of long sleeves. not distinguished between male/female.
- ian borden performing the city -
skating more political these days - skaters are redefining and resisting the current norms of urban planning and construction. architecture more tailored to skating.
south bank skate park threatened to be closed - skaters trying to stop it - resistance and action. henry edwards - long live southbank - its utterly contrived.
- lords of dogtown -
a family created from the subculture.
- parkour -
free running around the city. yamakasi - film. jump london - docc.
- graffiti -
because its anonymous you can escape ccategorisation or solcial placement - you arent black or white or asian but it matters if your female.
- girl subcultures -
have become more invisible becvause they have aquired such strong masculine overtones.
hells angels - girls ride on the back
mod girls - same style as boys, but have more independence because making money. quadrophenia.
hippy girl - good hippy/bad hippy - flower power/janis joplin
riot grrrrl - mid 90's onwards - underground punk movement based in dc, bands like bratmobile etc - diy nature of the music scene - about the experience and not so much the craft - about your attitude.
what makes it a true subculture -
- zines reveved from 70's
leads into courtney love - style but not the subculture - no politics or issues adressed - rebellion without cause.
moved into the spice girls era - girl power - actually a set of visual types for all girls to relate to one type - dont actually represent female equality - still just modern sex objects
subcultures represent noise not sound - interfrenece in orderly sequence. often become demonised by mass media and condemned and banded with all negative aspects of society. important
comodity form of subculture - gets swallowed up by the general public and mainstream - grunge all ripped clothes but because theyre old n not becuae of the look - global fashion then copies it and sells for lots of money.
a threat to the family? - womens own feature - punks and their mothers - an attempt to neutralise the threat of punk.
every subculture eventually becomes mainstream and is swallowed up my cvonsum,erism.
teddy boy culture - teds - edwardian style,
gavin watkins - skins
this is england.
the post subculture reader - book about subcultures.
Thursday 5 December 2013
Thursday 28 November 2013
OUGD501. COP2. Lecture - Censorship and 'Truth'
had a lecture with james.
indexucal qualities in phoyography in rendering truth.
photo manupulation
censorship in advertising
censorship in art/design.
- amnself adams -
makes stereotypically beautiful images.
- soviet union-
pravda and photo censhorship .
- 21st century -
new tecvhnology - digital allows for in depth photo manipulation
ad buster style ads about 9/11 - could be bad taste? or exposing advertising companies for their lack of humanity?
photo editing of humans - models/celebrities changed appearance on magazines etc.
photos can be combined to change the message.
- robert capa -
death of a loyalist soldier. (not actually called robert capa) is it real or set up? does it matter? is the communicative element still the same?
at the time of ww2 most people believed everything they saw in the media/school.
persuasion.
- jean baudrillad -
mostmodern writer. simulacrum/sumilation.
1.reflection of basis of reality.
2. masks and perverts a basic reality
- peter turnley -
photogrphy in 1st gulf war was completely controlled and restrictions based on what could be presented based of what us govt wanted people to see. turnley refused to comply and took his own photos.
mile of death - photo of loads of cars blown up etc.
bauldrialld argued gulf war was just an immitation war not like a realt war - based on the media coverage it received.
black n white in doccumentary -
does it add an aestheitc or take away from the dietail of the image?
ken jarecke - iraqi soldier - on front of news papers in 90's - colour image - very impacting.
the gulf war did not take place book -
branded faces delivered over the prostitiution of the image. no image of the field of battle.
- an-my le - small wars -
docc photographer in giuf war. took beuatiful images of horrific scenes - does it mask horrors of war? does aesthetic quality take from seriousness of war?
- censorship -
morals and ethics
in advertising - everybody wants to recostruct world around them and introduce some sort of purposeful and distorting alleviation.
- united colours of benetton -
shocking and controversional advertising for nothing.
question of nufdity -
when is it appropriate and not? ads have naked people n get banned but national gallery has hundreds of naked women.
art as serious artistic value - who defines the value?
the miller test - supposed to dteermine a pice of arts value.
obscenity law -
protect art while prohibiting trash
sally mann.
how much should you believe the truth?
should we be protected from it?
is manipulation fair in capitalist society?
should art sit outside censorship laws?
indexucal qualities in phoyography in rendering truth.
photo manupulation
censorship in advertising
censorship in art/design.
- amnself adams -
makes stereotypically beautiful images.
- soviet union-
pravda and photo censhorship .
- 21st century -
new tecvhnology - digital allows for in depth photo manipulation
ad buster style ads about 9/11 - could be bad taste? or exposing advertising companies for their lack of humanity?
photo editing of humans - models/celebrities changed appearance on magazines etc.
photos can be combined to change the message.
- robert capa -
death of a loyalist soldier. (not actually called robert capa) is it real or set up? does it matter? is the communicative element still the same?
at the time of ww2 most people believed everything they saw in the media/school.
persuasion.
- jean baudrillad -
mostmodern writer. simulacrum/sumilation.
1.reflection of basis of reality.
2. masks and perverts a basic reality
- peter turnley -
photogrphy in 1st gulf war was completely controlled and restrictions based on what could be presented based of what us govt wanted people to see. turnley refused to comply and took his own photos.
mile of death - photo of loads of cars blown up etc.
bauldrialld argued gulf war was just an immitation war not like a realt war - based on the media coverage it received.
black n white in doccumentary -
does it add an aestheitc or take away from the dietail of the image?
ken jarecke - iraqi soldier - on front of news papers in 90's - colour image - very impacting.
the gulf war did not take place book -
branded faces delivered over the prostitiution of the image. no image of the field of battle.
- an-my le - small wars -
docc photographer in giuf war. took beuatiful images of horrific scenes - does it mask horrors of war? does aesthetic quality take from seriousness of war?
- censorship -
morals and ethics
in advertising - everybody wants to recostruct world around them and introduce some sort of purposeful and distorting alleviation.
- united colours of benetton -
shocking and controversional advertising for nothing.
question of nufdity -
when is it appropriate and not? ads have naked people n get banned but national gallery has hundreds of naked women.
art as serious artistic value - who defines the value?
the miller test - supposed to dteermine a pice of arts value.
obscenity law -
protect art while prohibiting trash
sally mann.
how much should you believe the truth?
should we be protected from it?
is manipulation fair in capitalist society?
should art sit outside censorship laws?
Friday 22 November 2013
OUGD504. Design Production. Deisng for Print Lecture.
we had a lecture with from evolution print.
they are a print company
min 70gsm max 450 gsm.
talked about uncoated orints - images are flatter because when dot hits paper theres a spread of ink so less sharp. silk and gloss printing much sharper. 80gsm gloss will feel really thin.
litho - plate printing in cmyk, better quality but more expensive and a limited process. they use veg based inks. can do 5 colour print - very costly.
charge based on make ready charge - set up and running of machine. also plate costs for each colour.
digital - sora3 is max size in commercial digital print. digital uses powder based inks. also everything has to be full colour so spot colours might look different etc.
job costed using a clip charge - charged per sheet (5-10p for one colour one sided, 60p per sheet for one colour 2 sided). cant run a 5000 job on digital - too costly.
things designers get wrong -
- bleed - 3mm. include ticks, strokes, crop marks.
- business cards need to be layed separately
- booklets - send as single pages - they put together. if perfect bound with 5-10mm send the cover separate so they can work it out.
- send in pdf and original format.
- make sure in cymk.
- transparencies only work in over print
- any cuts or perferations they need to be set as over print and spot colour so can see the difference. set each one as a different spot colour in a separate file.
- image size - dont use 60mb images for smaller frame. keep at 300dpi and use same size image as frame or try to.
-if doing a booklet work in 8,16,32s not 4s.
.work and turn - each side matches up with the other - when one is done then its flipped and printed again.
.sheet work - 8 plates - for many different print jobs on one.
they dont do spot varnish or laminating.
they are a print company
min 70gsm max 450 gsm.
talked about uncoated orints - images are flatter because when dot hits paper theres a spread of ink so less sharp. silk and gloss printing much sharper. 80gsm gloss will feel really thin.
litho - plate printing in cmyk, better quality but more expensive and a limited process. they use veg based inks. can do 5 colour print - very costly.
charge based on make ready charge - set up and running of machine. also plate costs for each colour.
digital - sora3 is max size in commercial digital print. digital uses powder based inks. also everything has to be full colour so spot colours might look different etc.
job costed using a clip charge - charged per sheet (5-10p for one colour one sided, 60p per sheet for one colour 2 sided). cant run a 5000 job on digital - too costly.
things designers get wrong -
- bleed - 3mm. include ticks, strokes, crop marks.
- business cards need to be layed separately
- booklets - send as single pages - they put together. if perfect bound with 5-10mm send the cover separate so they can work it out.
- send in pdf and original format.
- make sure in cymk.
- transparencies only work in over print
- any cuts or perferations they need to be set as over print and spot colour so can see the difference. set each one as a different spot colour in a separate file.
- image size - dont use 60mb images for smaller frame. keep at 300dpi and use same size image as frame or try to.
-if doing a booklet work in 8,16,32s not 4s.
.work and turn - each side matches up with the other - when one is done then its flipped and printed again.
.sheet work - 8 plates - for many different print jobs on one.
they dont do spot varnish or laminating.
OUGD504. Design Production. Design for Print. Chronologies of Print Lecture.
today we had a lecture with amber on the chronological progression of print throughout history.
print is seen to be true - taken as truth becuase its physical. a news paper is a physically existing reference which people consider to be more reliable. if its printed then its correct.
doccumentation. communication. reproduction. distribution.
first eastern print 200 A.D europe later.
first moveable type in asia . 1450 in europe as community grows so does communication so there becomes a higher need to record it. literacy helped form and shape the class system. talked about the trickle down effect.
printed books in europe increased massively between 1450-1800. religion and science were both on the rise - wanted to record findings/preachings.
gutenberg press changed the world to a visually communicative world
marshal mclewen - "mediums the message". talked about community and predicted the web 30 years before its existance. printing started promoting individualism, capitalism, democracy, nationalism, because print was about the communication of people to people.
lino type revolutionalised print again - allowed to print whole blocks of pre written type.
lithography much cheaper then william morris - floral patterns changes the print. made the world more aesthetically driven.
made way for promotion and propaganda - goes back to the idea of print being physical to its true. nazism spread by printed emphemera. layering and block aesthetic - multiple colour prints enabled detail.
print is seen to be true - taken as truth becuase its physical. a news paper is a physically existing reference which people consider to be more reliable. if its printed then its correct.
doccumentation. communication. reproduction. distribution.
first eastern print 200 A.D europe later.
first moveable type in asia . 1450 in europe as community grows so does communication so there becomes a higher need to record it. literacy helped form and shape the class system. talked about the trickle down effect.
printed books in europe increased massively between 1450-1800. religion and science were both on the rise - wanted to record findings/preachings.
gutenberg press changed the world to a visually communicative world
marshal mclewen - "mediums the message". talked about community and predicted the web 30 years before its existance. printing started promoting individualism, capitalism, democracy, nationalism, because print was about the communication of people to people.
lino type revolutionalised print again - allowed to print whole blocks of pre written type.
lithography much cheaper then william morris - floral patterns changes the print. made the world more aesthetically driven.
made way for promotion and propaganda - goes back to the idea of print being physical to its true. nazism spread by printed emphemera. layering and block aesthetic - multiple colour prints enabled detail.
Thursday 21 November 2013
OUGD501. COP2. Lecture - Globalisation, Sustainability & the Media.
today we had the lecture with richard on globalisation and sustainability.
the medias role perpetuating consumerism and capitol trade.
- globalisation -
/socailist - process by which the world unified into a single society
the unification could be figured as a positive, not communism though.
/capitalist - elimination of state enforced trade restrictions and embargos
to work the system needs to keep growing so globalisation is well interlinked.
both systems see globalisation as a positive but for different reasons.
word not just used in an economic sense but also about consciousness - to do with the dominance of of a culture (e.g. america) like westernisation. technology makes us all interlinked - a sort of globalisation.
- cultural globalisation -
part of westernisation into 3rd world countirs has brought a spread of one dominant culture including its attributes and values. called macdonladsisation - idea that american big business taking over the world and spreading owns ideas of life and global and political organisation. also refers to idea of fast as opposed to slow food - just eat, dont think, dont have nice meals, just eat quick and efficient - idea of work under the capitalist system like a 'mcjob' unrewarding, mundane but necessary jobs - only form of profit - no job satisfaction.
- marshal mcluhan -
in 60's people got excited about idea of globalisation. mcluhan a philosopher argued that new technologies will have a massive impact on the way we communicate and connect with each other. predicted way before the internet. rapidity of communication echoes the senses.
global village thesis - an implosion of the world and distances between cultures and countries and now just a little village and everyone is aware and alert to the global construct.
the internet has proved this expenentially except for the togetherness and connection between humanities and clutures because people dont sympathise, empathise, feel together. instead we are individualised through our identity off and online so much that epople feel separated from each other.
whats actually happening is a forced and conflicting spread of western imperialism met by reststance from countries and cultures being taken over.
there is no global embrace.
- 3 problems of globalisation -
1 - sovereignty - challenges to the idea od the nation state
2 - accountability - transnational forces and organisations: who controls them?
3 - identity - who are we? nation, group, community.
MNC's have escaped governemt sanctions and controls by operating internationally.
- cultural imperialism -
if global village run with a certain set of values would become an assimlialted community.
rigging the free market -
-oligopolies
-collusion
-trade pacts
-media dominance
timewarner owns everything!!! then BskyB NewsCorporation.
the world is divided into geographical markets -
-north america
-western europe, japan, australia
-BRIC countries
-the rest of the world
markets with highest profit value are targeted the most by these organisations.
US media a new form of imperialsism a new war on individual thought -
not about violence but about indoctrination to a western train of thought - consumerism. the 2nd and 3rd world has already been hit by these ideologies.
EG big brother
look at noam chomsky
- propaganda model - 5 basic filters -
. ownership
- e.g. rupert murdoch who has a particular political agenda - the profit motive. his umberella companies perpetuate his own image. papers helped sway the outcome of the elections. people like this have incredible power and influence politically and econommically.
. funding
. sourcing
- whats allowed to be reported by the editors, owners, political affiliates, funders for media organisations because they are businesses and follow the profit motive. all news is biassed.
. flak
- lobbying groups. us based global climate coalition - lobbyist group for exxon, texaco and ford and gthey get ads on tv/in magazines, stop and nay sayers, creative support and like for these companies.
. anti left ideology
an inconvenient truth - so over the top.
flat earthers - still deny co2 rise, global warming etc and say its propaganda etc.
- Sustainability -
'sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs' - if system is based on capitalism and the profit motive powers will never be concerned with the future or the next generation becuase it would limit business so sustainablity is fundamentaly unattainable.
all attemps to promote sustainability are essentially capitalist - buy this to sollve the problem, use this product which creates more subsidiary pollution than what its replacing.
greenwashing - making thins have an eco aestheic makes them more reliable and trustworthy from the eco aware point of view.
the medias role perpetuating consumerism and capitol trade.
- globalisation -
/socailist - process by which the world unified into a single society
the unification could be figured as a positive, not communism though.
/capitalist - elimination of state enforced trade restrictions and embargos
to work the system needs to keep growing so globalisation is well interlinked.
both systems see globalisation as a positive but for different reasons.
word not just used in an economic sense but also about consciousness - to do with the dominance of of a culture (e.g. america) like westernisation. technology makes us all interlinked - a sort of globalisation.
- cultural globalisation -
part of westernisation into 3rd world countirs has brought a spread of one dominant culture including its attributes and values. called macdonladsisation - idea that american big business taking over the world and spreading owns ideas of life and global and political organisation. also refers to idea of fast as opposed to slow food - just eat, dont think, dont have nice meals, just eat quick and efficient - idea of work under the capitalist system like a 'mcjob' unrewarding, mundane but necessary jobs - only form of profit - no job satisfaction.
- marshal mcluhan -
in 60's people got excited about idea of globalisation. mcluhan a philosopher argued that new technologies will have a massive impact on the way we communicate and connect with each other. predicted way before the internet. rapidity of communication echoes the senses.
global village thesis - an implosion of the world and distances between cultures and countries and now just a little village and everyone is aware and alert to the global construct.
the internet has proved this expenentially except for the togetherness and connection between humanities and clutures because people dont sympathise, empathise, feel together. instead we are individualised through our identity off and online so much that epople feel separated from each other.
whats actually happening is a forced and conflicting spread of western imperialism met by reststance from countries and cultures being taken over.
there is no global embrace.
- 3 problems of globalisation -
1 - sovereignty - challenges to the idea od the nation state
2 - accountability - transnational forces and organisations: who controls them?
3 - identity - who are we? nation, group, community.
MNC's have escaped governemt sanctions and controls by operating internationally.
- cultural imperialism -
if global village run with a certain set of values would become an assimlialted community.
rigging the free market -
-oligopolies
-collusion
-trade pacts
-media dominance
timewarner owns everything!!! then BskyB NewsCorporation.
the world is divided into geographical markets -
-north america
-western europe, japan, australia
-BRIC countries
-the rest of the world
markets with highest profit value are targeted the most by these organisations.
US media a new form of imperialsism a new war on individual thought -
not about violence but about indoctrination to a western train of thought - consumerism. the 2nd and 3rd world has already been hit by these ideologies.
EG big brother
look at noam chomsky
- propaganda model - 5 basic filters -
. ownership
- e.g. rupert murdoch who has a particular political agenda - the profit motive. his umberella companies perpetuate his own image. papers helped sway the outcome of the elections. people like this have incredible power and influence politically and econommically.
. funding
. sourcing
- whats allowed to be reported by the editors, owners, political affiliates, funders for media organisations because they are businesses and follow the profit motive. all news is biassed.
. flak
- lobbying groups. us based global climate coalition - lobbyist group for exxon, texaco and ford and gthey get ads on tv/in magazines, stop and nay sayers, creative support and like for these companies.
. anti left ideology
an inconvenient truth - so over the top.
flat earthers - still deny co2 rise, global warming etc and say its propaganda etc.
- Sustainability -
'sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs' - if system is based on capitalism and the profit motive powers will never be concerned with the future or the next generation becuase it would limit business so sustainablity is fundamentaly unattainable.
all attemps to promote sustainability are essentially capitalist - buy this to sollve the problem, use this product which creates more subsidiary pollution than what its replacing.
greenwashing - making thins have an eco aestheic makes them more reliable and trustworthy from the eco aware point of view.
Tuesday 19 November 2013
OUGD501. COP2. Progress Tutorial.
today i had a progress tutorial with richard involving my progression so far and a talk about what i was thinking about doing for my essay.
having spoken briefly about some of the topics ive been interested in from the lecture programme; identity, the male gaze/feminism, advertising, stereotypes and so on, we went on to consider what i might choose as the topic for my essay.
because i have a considerable interest in feminism and the male gaze, partially arisen from past studies, i thought that this would be an appropriate topic to pursue.
we talked about the representations of gender in modern culture and through advertising. we also discussed how stereotypes and media driven roles are more apparent yet less recognised as negative portrayals/persuasions.
so i decided that i wanted to look at male gaze theory and the representations of women applied to examples of past and contemporary advertising.
in terms of my practical responses for the module we talked about considering an editorial path and how a publication could create awareness about how women are portrayed and how this affects female equality in the modern day. we talked about possibly looking at redesigning ads to achieve this or to mock the concept that it promotes.
he told a website that archives old ads that are examples of this topic and other similar topics:
http://genderads.com/
having spoken briefly about some of the topics ive been interested in from the lecture programme; identity, the male gaze/feminism, advertising, stereotypes and so on, we went on to consider what i might choose as the topic for my essay.
because i have a considerable interest in feminism and the male gaze, partially arisen from past studies, i thought that this would be an appropriate topic to pursue.
we talked about the representations of gender in modern culture and through advertising. we also discussed how stereotypes and media driven roles are more apparent yet less recognised as negative portrayals/persuasions.
so i decided that i wanted to look at male gaze theory and the representations of women applied to examples of past and contemporary advertising.
in terms of my practical responses for the module we talked about considering an editorial path and how a publication could create awareness about how women are portrayed and how this affects female equality in the modern day. we talked about possibly looking at redesigning ads to achieve this or to mock the concept that it promotes.
he told a website that archives old ads that are examples of this topic and other similar topics:
http://genderads.com/
Thursday 14 November 2013
OUGD501. COP2. Lecture - Ethics and creative practice.
what is it to be a good person?
we live in an un just system based on exploitation and inequality. how can we exist within that and stay positive?
media and writers over associate advertisers (creatives) with the consumer society we live in as opposed to the companies funding and directing the advertising for their capitol gain.
- first things first - Ken Garland, 1964.
a creative manifesto produced in boom time. felt frustrated that creatives were wasting talent on marketing pointless products/services. was a call for designers to do something more with their talent - a sigh on the waste of creative talent in the capitol system. about proposing the reversal of priorities.
was replaced by FTF2000 by ADBUSTERS mag which advocates middle class revolution to the middle class - think of selves as a very political and active journal. decided to redraft the manifesto. the tone changes from a cry about wasted talent to a more critical stance particularly on advertising in line with capitol progression. talks about designers applying their skills to promote the most mundane products and their time and energy is used to manufacture demand for rubbish and waste. eg - involvement in promoting credit cards is encouraging peoples involvement in capitalist debt cycle and are trapped in consumer system.
manifesto states designers are uncomfortable with this, stating that it changes the way people think and feel unnaturaley. say that there are other causes that require creatives help - but then what is worthy and unworthy and how do we judge that? becomes very preachy depending on how causes are chosen. say that if a creative who promotes comapnies that produce consumer items you are unethical becuase you perpetuate a consumer/capitalist society.
they do things like culture jamming - messing with logos and doing 'political' street art and have things like 'buynothingday' and 'turnofftvweek'. in favour of visual communication and anti capitalist politics.
milton glasyer signed the remaifesto - none of the signers have any problems becuase their all reslly rich and successful and so can afford snobbery and the freedom to act how they want.
should be targeting capitalism and consumerism as opposed to advertising and advertisers.
- meme warfare -
memes can change behaviour and minds supposedly but really just replacing capitalism with anti capitalism and still the same basic machine - not exactly ethical in its own rights.
- victor papanek -
'most things are not designed for the needs of the people but for the needs of the manufacturer to sell to the people'
mnost design wasteful and exploitative and he tries to achieve ethics but goes over the top and targets advertisers overly as opposed to the companies etc. however, he sees a grander purpose for creatives and the individual. people are ignoring design solutions for the sake of profit.
- the design problem -
all creatives in the world only touch the tip of the iceberg making thinks sell whereas the 90% underwater is untouched and ignored by all.
- how do we determine what is good? -
creatives pretty much automatically have to work within the system but we can choose to work ethically still. have to refer to the age old philosophical debate of good vs evil.
. subjective relativism
- there are no universal moral norms of right/wrong
- all persons decide right/wrong for themselves
. cultural relativism
- the ethical theory that right/wrong depends on time/place
- not all cultures are the same though
. divine command theory
- good actions are aligned with the will of god
- bad actions are contrary to the will of god
- the holy book helps make decisions
- kantism -
- peoiples wills should be based on moral rules
- therefore its important that our actions based on appropriate moral rules
- determine appropriate moral rules kant proposed 2 categorical imperatives:
1. act only on moral rules that you can at the same time universalise - if your act would cause probems if everyone followd it then dont do it.
2. act so that you always treat yourself as ends in themselves, and never only as a means to an end - using people for your own benefit is not moral.
- utilitarianism -
john stuart mills theorised principles of utility - greatest happiness principle.
- an action is right if it increases total happiness of the affected parties and vice versa. happiness has many definitions; advantage, benefit, good, pleasure.
- a rule is right if it increases total happiness of the affected parties and vice versa.
both pertain to rules and you have to give up your liberty to do them.
- social contract theory -
hobbes/russeau
- an agreement held between individuals by common interest
- avoids society degenerating into a 'state of nature'
- morally consists in the set of rules
- we trade some of our liberty for a stable society
these ethical theories can provide possible solutions for critique of FTF.
should be aiming for socially and ecologically responsible design.
do a mix of pro bono and salaried work. social tithe.
we live in an un just system based on exploitation and inequality. how can we exist within that and stay positive?
media and writers over associate advertisers (creatives) with the consumer society we live in as opposed to the companies funding and directing the advertising for their capitol gain.
- first things first - Ken Garland, 1964.
a creative manifesto produced in boom time. felt frustrated that creatives were wasting talent on marketing pointless products/services. was a call for designers to do something more with their talent - a sigh on the waste of creative talent in the capitol system. about proposing the reversal of priorities.
was replaced by FTF2000 by ADBUSTERS mag which advocates middle class revolution to the middle class - think of selves as a very political and active journal. decided to redraft the manifesto. the tone changes from a cry about wasted talent to a more critical stance particularly on advertising in line with capitol progression. talks about designers applying their skills to promote the most mundane products and their time and energy is used to manufacture demand for rubbish and waste. eg - involvement in promoting credit cards is encouraging peoples involvement in capitalist debt cycle and are trapped in consumer system.
manifesto states designers are uncomfortable with this, stating that it changes the way people think and feel unnaturaley. say that there are other causes that require creatives help - but then what is worthy and unworthy and how do we judge that? becomes very preachy depending on how causes are chosen. say that if a creative who promotes comapnies that produce consumer items you are unethical becuase you perpetuate a consumer/capitalist society.
they do things like culture jamming - messing with logos and doing 'political' street art and have things like 'buynothingday' and 'turnofftvweek'. in favour of visual communication and anti capitalist politics.
milton glasyer signed the remaifesto - none of the signers have any problems becuase their all reslly rich and successful and so can afford snobbery and the freedom to act how they want.
should be targeting capitalism and consumerism as opposed to advertising and advertisers.
- meme warfare -
memes can change behaviour and minds supposedly but really just replacing capitalism with anti capitalism and still the same basic machine - not exactly ethical in its own rights.
- victor papanek -
'most things are not designed for the needs of the people but for the needs of the manufacturer to sell to the people'
mnost design wasteful and exploitative and he tries to achieve ethics but goes over the top and targets advertisers overly as opposed to the companies etc. however, he sees a grander purpose for creatives and the individual. people are ignoring design solutions for the sake of profit.
- the design problem -
all creatives in the world only touch the tip of the iceberg making thinks sell whereas the 90% underwater is untouched and ignored by all.
- how do we determine what is good? -
creatives pretty much automatically have to work within the system but we can choose to work ethically still. have to refer to the age old philosophical debate of good vs evil.
. subjective relativism
- there are no universal moral norms of right/wrong
- all persons decide right/wrong for themselves
. cultural relativism
- the ethical theory that right/wrong depends on time/place
- not all cultures are the same though
. divine command theory
- good actions are aligned with the will of god
- bad actions are contrary to the will of god
- the holy book helps make decisions
- kantism -
- peoiples wills should be based on moral rules
- therefore its important that our actions based on appropriate moral rules
- determine appropriate moral rules kant proposed 2 categorical imperatives:
1. act only on moral rules that you can at the same time universalise - if your act would cause probems if everyone followd it then dont do it.
2. act so that you always treat yourself as ends in themselves, and never only as a means to an end - using people for your own benefit is not moral.
- utilitarianism -
john stuart mills theorised principles of utility - greatest happiness principle.
- an action is right if it increases total happiness of the affected parties and vice versa. happiness has many definitions; advantage, benefit, good, pleasure.
- a rule is right if it increases total happiness of the affected parties and vice versa.
both pertain to rules and you have to give up your liberty to do them.
- social contract theory -
hobbes/russeau
- an agreement held between individuals by common interest
- avoids society degenerating into a 'state of nature'
- morally consists in the set of rules
- we trade some of our liberty for a stable society
these ethical theories can provide possible solutions for critique of FTF.
should be aiming for socially and ecologically responsible design.
do a mix of pro bono and salaried work. social tithe.
Wednesday 13 November 2013
OUGD501. COP2. Communication Theory Session/Study Task 1.
today we had our first seminar with richard about communication theory and the shannon-weaver amthematical model of the communication process -
although not completely accurate and relatable the model does give a good basic illustration of the design process however the design process is never a linear one.
we then talked about what noise meant in design terms and what examples we could think of. richard made the point that noise is not always a negative like how zines being low cost means often there are errors in design/production but that these have now become a part of the zine aesthetic - offset print etc becomes communication in itself.
- redundancy vs entropy
redundancy is high predictability, low information, widely understood, the most basic.
entropy is unexpected, unpredictable, high info, less widely understood, more intricate.
in design redundancy is a desired thing because it usually means the most successful method/form of communication meaning the most effective design.
we were then given the task to analyse a piece of visual communication in line with the model and taking into consideration redundancy/entropy.
having looked at some peices of visual communication i decided to choose the promotional poster for the 2011 film 'Martha Marcy May Marlene'
richard asked us to consider some questions when writing our response to the task as a 'guidance' to our writing:
we tried to relate the design process to this model in groups talking about what each stage could be in design terms. having discussed and debated we each had slightly different opinions.
- information source - the client - provides designer with brief/spec i.e. information
- transmitter - the designer - recieves information and through self reinterprets it to form of communication
- channel - the product - the media/format of the design produced
- receiver - the audience - anyone who sees or comes in contact with the design
- destination - the target audience - the audience who is intended by the designer to see the design
- noise source - reasearch/understanding - how much the designer knows about the topic/aims
having discussed our theories as a class richard then went on to talk about there being 3 main levels of communication problems -
level a - technical problems; how accurately can a message be transmitted
level b - semantic problems; how precisely is the message conveyed
level c - effectiveness problems; how effectively do the recieved message and its meaning affect behaviour.
an example of each -
a - technical problems - the printer broke
b - semantic problems - the client gave a poor brief
c - effectiveness problems - the promotion of a club compared to its attendance levelsalthough not completely accurate and relatable the model does give a good basic illustration of the design process however the design process is never a linear one.
we then talked about what noise meant in design terms and what examples we could think of. richard made the point that noise is not always a negative like how zines being low cost means often there are errors in design/production but that these have now become a part of the zine aesthetic - offset print etc becomes communication in itself.
- redundancy vs entropy
redundancy is high predictability, low information, widely understood, the most basic.
entropy is unexpected, unpredictable, high info, less widely understood, more intricate.
in design redundancy is a desired thing because it usually means the most successful method/form of communication meaning the most effective design.
we were then given the task to analyse a piece of visual communication in line with the model and taking into consideration redundancy/entropy.
having looked at some peices of visual communication i decided to choose the promotional poster for the 2011 film 'Martha Marcy May Marlene'
richard asked us to consider some questions when writing our response to the task as a 'guidance' to our writing:
What are the main communicative functions of redundancy?
What are the ways in which convention can be said to facilitate understanding?
How does your chosen piece of visual communication break or extend specific conventions?
How does this effect the desire to communicate or the intended audience?
the information source (client) has relayed the themes of the film to the transmitter (designer) which he has translated into an appropriate channel (media/format) that is left to the receiver (audience) to decode.
The poster above is a promotional design for the film 'Martha Marcy May Marlene' designed by Jack Crossing of Empire Design. It uses photo layering accompanied by a soft, pastel aesthetic to give a seeming beauty and serenity while subtly implying a disturbing undertone. The grid style layout of the sans-serif text co-exists well with the theme of the poster as it remains neutral and so doesn't affect how the poster is otherwise interpreted. The themes of uncertainty and danger masqueraded by the calm and uplifting beginnings are fantastically visualised through the overlapping photographs of Marcy and the dark stranger in the background. The sun glare and the desaturated colour both communicate placidity yet her facial expressions and the macro style focus suggest otherwise. The form of a poster is appropriate to the reason for the design (film promotion) and, furthermore, when seen printed, extends the look and texture of the design in line with its communicative aims. On the surface, the design's aesthetic is very simple and easily absorbed. It's clean, inoffensive and generally aesthetically pleasing but, on a deeper level, the redundancy of the design is questionable. a film poster, in its most basic justification, should communicate to the target audience what the film is about. This poster, a good example of entropic design, does not really follow convention in its aims as the methods through which the designer is trying to communicate are cryptic and require greater analysis to understand. The poster, to an extent, is contradictory in its purpose and execution because, to truly understand the poster and relate it to the film, you have to watch the film and this, somewhat, lessens its promotional value. Inversely, the design could be interpreted as purposefully misleading to the audience or promoting a false sense of security about the film which would be wholly appropriate because this is the point of the film itself. The design and its methods of communicating the film break away from typical promotional conventions in that it is very mysterious and doesn't really tell the audience much. Instead, it follows more contemporary and progressive methods in targeting peoples curiosity and desire to learn, especially when presented with something they don't understand or know about. This could be considered a risky method because it relies on the assumption that the audience is curious enough to do further research which should, in turn, interest them more in the film. With the common ownership of smart technology and near global access to the internet, however, this is a much safer assumption and is really appropriate to a 21st century audience who are likely to engage with the promotion more-so. I think the poster is a fantastically executed and considered piece of promotion that relates so perfectly to the themes of the film and its intended audience and that appropriately excludes those outside that target market.
Monday 11 November 2013
OUGD501. COP2. Lecture - The Gaze and the Media.
the lecture looks at the impact this has in the everyday, and how the prevalence of
the male Gaze normalizes these perceptions of women and their bodies and is
internalized by women themselves. This is a complex area of investigation, and
rather than a simple ‘reversal’ of the Gaze onto the male body, the lecture seeks
to address and question image makers as to the possibility of an alternative
portrayal of the body.
'men look at women. women watch themselves beeing looked at' - john berger.
'men look at women. women watch themselves beeing looked at' - john berger.
The camera in contemporary media has been put to use as an extension of
the male gaze at women on the streets. fashion/photography/.advertising all based on idea of sex sells and because most people straight means women are the icon to target men to sell. so in turn over exposure of women and depiction of nude form in global culture lessens the sanctity of the female form and nover normalises the naked women making it appear ok for men to objectify women.
xVoyeurism:
the compulsion to seek sexual gratification by secretively looking at sexual
objects or acts; the actions of a Peeping Tom.
Male
nude as challenging the gaze
Gym-
sports-power
Cult
of fitness – male ideals of body image.
•Women ‘marginalised within the masculine discourses of
art history’
•This marginalisation supports the ‘hegemony of men in cultural practice, in art’
•Women not only marginalised but supposed
to be marginalised
"I'd
say it's a constant undercurrent, when women write about feminist issues or are
exposed in a lot of media for speaking out about sexism they tend to get a
barrage of abuse and threats,"
social media furthers the theory of the male gaze and is used by both men and women to objectify and sexualise women and the female form.
The
body is broken into fragments-could be any female
Plays
on teenagers body consciousness, potentially carrying those perceptions into adult life
The act of photographing is more than passive observing. Like sexual
voyeurism, it is a way of at least tacitly, often explicitly, encouraging what
is going on to keep on happening' susan sontag
reality tv furthers the ideas of voyerism and gives the viewer seemingly free invitiation to 'the gaze' however there is no freedom of viewing or really freedom of thought - editing and camera angles etc means the production company can sway the viewer any way they want an it becomes so much more entrenched because the viewer thinks they have the freedom and the autonomy to come to their own conclusions about what their watching but in actual fact there is no freedom and only the re affirmation of the male gaze and women being lesser.
Looking
is not indifferent. There can never be any question of 'just looking'.
Victor Burgin (1982)
Victor Burgin (1982)
OUGD501. COP Lecture - Identity.
- essentialism -
our biological makeup makes up who we are
physiognomy, phrenology - informs how people read identity. a study of good mental health and where in the brain it occurs. links with the ideas of criminal tendencies being somewhat hereditary. supposedly the straightens of your face dictates how intelligent you are - dated thought because based on caucasian face being straighter. physiognomy legitimises racism. physical features exaggerated in fine art to portray a certain stereotype or identity or to challenge one. post modern thought disagrees with essentialism and theory of human identity made up from biological make up.
- pre modern identity -
personal identity - defined by long standing roles
- modern identity -
modern society offers wider range of social roles
- post modern identity -
accepts a 'fragmented self' identity is contructed.
- physiognomy/phrenology -
dated pseudo-scientific theory of shape of brain and skull in relation to 'scientific' proof of intelligence, personality traits, thought process etc. basically grounds for racism and segregation of race. also related to the theory of criminal tendencies being inherited (genetic) and not due to social factors.
- chris ofili -
black artist who looks at rcism and stereotyping and makes comments on societys attitude and opinion to these topics through his art. uses things like elephant poo to visualise native roots and mocks western thought.
- pre modern identity -
based on social heirarchy (in uk heirarchy of the church and monarchy) - your job title and living conditions deterimed your social status.
- modern identity -
baudeleire introduced idea of the 'flaneur' - the gentleman stroller who walks the city and 'observes' society.
accepts a 'fragmented self' identity is contructed.
- physiognomy/phrenology -
dated pseudo-scientific theory of shape of brain and skull in relation to 'scientific' proof of intelligence, personality traits, thought process etc. basically grounds for racism and segregation of race. also related to the theory of criminal tendencies being inherited (genetic) and not due to social factors.
- chris ofili -
black artist who looks at rcism and stereotyping and makes comments on societys attitude and opinion to these topics through his art. uses things like elephant poo to visualise native roots and mocks western thought.
- pre modern identity -
based on social heirarchy (in uk heirarchy of the church and monarchy) - your job title and living conditions deterimed your social status.
- modern identity -
baudeleire introduced idea of the 'flaneur' - the gentleman stroller who walks the city and 'observes' society.
Veblen – ‘Conspicuous consumption of valuable goods is a means of reputability to the gentleman of leisure’
the flaneur was upper class so associated with a style/fashion/outlook/personality - to appear a higher social class lower classes would mimic upper classes in look and dress etc but then upper classes would move away to reaffirm the twos separation and the cycle continues - trickle down theory.
- george simmel -
‘The
feeling of isolation is rarely as decisive and intense when one actually finds
oneself physically alone, as when one is a stranger without relations, among
many physically close persons, at a party, on the train, or in the traffic of a
large city’
- post modern identity -
considers the 'discourse analysis' - identity is constructed from the discourses culturally available to us. main discourses to be considered -
these factors along with many other social factors are consiidered to determine and shape ones identity which leads into the theory of otherness. the self is considered to be a series of facades that are objective and not really there.
Introspection is a
disappearing act. Faced with moments alone in their cars, on the street or at
supermarket checkouts, more and more people do not collect their thoughts, but
scan their mobile phone messages for shreds of evidence that someone, somewhere
may need or want them.’
leads into social networking and how people create new identities on line - second life best example.
Thursday 7 November 2013
OUGD501. Context of Practice 2. Lecture - Cities and Film.
lecture is about:
photographs about 9/11 - people looking at the towers falling.
the city starts to feature as a figure of investigation in modernism - urban sociology.
contrasts between public and private.
the city in postmodernism
georg simmel-
a german sociologist. writing influenced the frankfurt school of thinkers.
was part of dresden exhibition - talked about the controversial role of the city on the individual. at a time leading up to freuds writing on psycho analysis.
urban sociology -
was looking at how the individual might escape the city and not be swallowed up. this resistance was captured by lewis hine.
louis sullivan -
creator of modern skyscraper. influential to the chicago school, mentor to frank lloyd wright.
coined the phrase ''form (ever) follows function''.
built guaranty building - divided into four levels considered for practical use.
chicago fire made way for his new buildings like carson pririe scott store in chicago.
saw clips from manhatta
charles scheeler -
fordism - gramsci from americanism and fordism - the human becoming the machine and a continuous cycle of consumption and waste.
modern times - charlie chaplin. typical farce.
the factory makes use of the man not the other way.
wall street crash helped this and lead to great depression
the man with a movie camera - 1929. uses new and interesting techniques and angles.
flaneur - a gentleman who strolls - posh person.
charles baudelaire -0
19th cent french poet says flaneur someone able to see the city.
walter benjamin -
adopts the concept of the urban observer as an analytical tool and as a lifestyle.
susan sontag -
photographer a type of flaneur whos involved but removed from society looking in on it.
then was introduced the concept of flaneuse - female flaneur
sophie calle - follows people on the street and takes photos of them.
cindy sherman - untitled film stills protray a film noir style stills with her in dramatised poses.
weegee (arthur felig) - press photogropher reporting on emercencies in the city. thought he had a weegee board becuase he was always there exactly when it happened. actually he had a police radio to find out wt was goin on.
a link to this and those sort of films with l.a.noire - semi film video game that allows user to create own film through gameplay.
lorca di corcia - heads - looks at the idea of the individual and their relation to the crowd - an experience within the city. he hides lights on the pavement and then photograhs them in a smal light - he is removed from the scene. photos look like film stills but subjects dont actually know theyre being photographed.
walker evans - many are called
takes photos that look like subject aware of camera but actualy are unaware so fully natuaral photogrphs.
postmodern city in photography -
joel meyerowitz looks at broadway in all its brieght colour and doesnt have a focus - its busy and theres nothing telling us where to look. mimics the overwhelming info in a city without the unity we need to understand the photograph.
events of 9/11 mark the end of the existence on a flaneur becuase there is no way to be detatched as a recorder because everything constantly monitored and recorded and the fact that everyone can record everything and be their own independent journalisty/photographer.
thomas ruff - looks at images of twin towers and messes with them like pixelating it saying that docc photography isnt enough to represent/portray an event.
surveillance city - since 9/11 everythin recorded and so no room for the individual photographer. 'we now seek machines to look at picutres on our behalf'.
photographs about 9/11 - people looking at the towers falling.
the city starts to feature as a figure of investigation in modernism - urban sociology.
contrasts between public and private.
the city in postmodernism
georg simmel-
a german sociologist. writing influenced the frankfurt school of thinkers.
was part of dresden exhibition - talked about the controversial role of the city on the individual. at a time leading up to freuds writing on psycho analysis.
urban sociology -
was looking at how the individual might escape the city and not be swallowed up. this resistance was captured by lewis hine.
louis sullivan -
creator of modern skyscraper. influential to the chicago school, mentor to frank lloyd wright.
coined the phrase ''form (ever) follows function''.
built guaranty building - divided into four levels considered for practical use.
chicago fire made way for his new buildings like carson pririe scott store in chicago.
saw clips from manhatta
charles scheeler -
fordism - gramsci from americanism and fordism - the human becoming the machine and a continuous cycle of consumption and waste.
modern times - charlie chaplin. typical farce.
the factory makes use of the man not the other way.
wall street crash helped this and lead to great depression
the man with a movie camera - 1929. uses new and interesting techniques and angles.
flaneur - a gentleman who strolls - posh person.
charles baudelaire -0
19th cent french poet says flaneur someone able to see the city.
walter benjamin -
adopts the concept of the urban observer as an analytical tool and as a lifestyle.
susan sontag -
photographer a type of flaneur whos involved but removed from society looking in on it.
then was introduced the concept of flaneuse - female flaneur
sophie calle - follows people on the street and takes photos of them.
cindy sherman - untitled film stills protray a film noir style stills with her in dramatised poses.
weegee (arthur felig) - press photogropher reporting on emercencies in the city. thought he had a weegee board becuase he was always there exactly when it happened. actually he had a police radio to find out wt was goin on.
a link to this and those sort of films with l.a.noire - semi film video game that allows user to create own film through gameplay.
lorca di corcia - heads - looks at the idea of the individual and their relation to the crowd - an experience within the city. he hides lights on the pavement and then photograhs them in a smal light - he is removed from the scene. photos look like film stills but subjects dont actually know theyre being photographed.
walker evans - many are called
takes photos that look like subject aware of camera but actualy are unaware so fully natuaral photogrphs.
postmodern city in photography -
joel meyerowitz looks at broadway in all its brieght colour and doesnt have a focus - its busy and theres nothing telling us where to look. mimics the overwhelming info in a city without the unity we need to understand the photograph.
events of 9/11 mark the end of the existence on a flaneur becuase there is no way to be detatched as a recorder because everything constantly monitored and recorded and the fact that everyone can record everything and be their own independent journalisty/photographer.
thomas ruff - looks at images of twin towers and messes with them like pixelating it saying that docc photography isnt enough to represent/portray an event.
surveillance city - since 9/11 everythin recorded and so no room for the individual photographer. 'we now seek machines to look at picutres on our behalf'.
Thursday 17 October 2013
OUGD501. COP Lecture - Consumerism; Persuasion, Society, Brand, Culture.
- analyse rise of US consumerism
- links between consumerism and our unconscious desires
- look at Freud
- look at Bernays
- consumerism as a social control
century of self.
no logo.
film/book about topic.
FREUD
- psychoanalysis - new method of understanding human nature, very radical views.
- argued that humanity has repressed desires stemming from pre modern man - very dangerous if surface.
- talked about humanity being wholly irrational and desire based - think they make decisions based on - - thought and sense but most acts are below the surface of consciousness. the 'ID' is the majority of human thought that occurs in the unconscious.
civilisation and its discontent:
- fundamental tension between civilisation and the individual
- human desires are incompatible with the well being of community
- the pleasure principle: if were made to feel like we can act out on our primitive desires in a socially acceptable way we are momentarily docile and happy.
- to an extent humanity will always be unhappy if repressed instincts arent released.
- freud had interest in enabling primitive desires in a socially acceptable way.
- argued that ww1 a testament to his theory - destruction is the nature of human beings (espec. those is a repressive society)
BERNAYS
- press agent employed in public info in ww1 working with propaganda. post war set up 'the council on public relations' - birth of PR.
- he theorised that any animal desire that a thing could be linked to you can make a false need for that thing (i.e product)
- worked with many major companies in promotion and advertising, lead to his book propaganda.
- paved the way for product placement, celebrity endorsements, pseudo-scientific reports.
- was even involved in political promotion.
- came an emergence of desire and capital progression mutually.
- made the link between male sexual prowess and owning a car
FORDISM
- henry ford created production line - meant mass production on a rapid and efficient scale - increased productivity.
- increased prduction = increased profit so he increased workers wages = increased disposable income.
- companies began promoting specialty of their product above others - competition.
- marketing became mainly based on product to desire association. desire for power, success, sex the strongest. caused a culture shift from society needing to society wanting.
- (the hidden pursuaders book) selling emotional security (eg freezer provides emotional security of knowing theres food in house), selling reassurance of wealth, selling ego-gratification, selling creative outlets, selling love objects, selling sense of power, selling immortality.
- a new elite is needed to manage the bewildered herd. lippmann recognised political place in consumerism - if party can make the masses believe theyre secure in their ways and will always be provided for in their desires said party will gain long standing power - 'manufacturing consent'. created a synthesis between big business and government.
- if you dont re manufacture the desire people will stop spending
- lippmann started working with govt. to help emergence of mass consumerism in west but then wall st. crash then great depression so people began to recognise free market and consumerism unstable.
- roosevelt and new deal - welfare, social security etc.
- world fair - burnayes one of figures involved. basically a massive propaganda act to re-promote big business and consumerism for americans to see a prosperous future.
society based on the illusion of freedom through consumption.
- links between consumerism and our unconscious desires
- look at Freud
- look at Bernays
- consumerism as a social control
century of self.
no logo.
film/book about topic.
FREUD
- psychoanalysis - new method of understanding human nature, very radical views.
- argued that humanity has repressed desires stemming from pre modern man - very dangerous if surface.
- talked about humanity being wholly irrational and desire based - think they make decisions based on - - thought and sense but most acts are below the surface of consciousness. the 'ID' is the majority of human thought that occurs in the unconscious.
civilisation and its discontent:
- fundamental tension between civilisation and the individual
- human desires are incompatible with the well being of community
- the pleasure principle: if were made to feel like we can act out on our primitive desires in a socially acceptable way we are momentarily docile and happy.
- to an extent humanity will always be unhappy if repressed instincts arent released.
- freud had interest in enabling primitive desires in a socially acceptable way.
- argued that ww1 a testament to his theory - destruction is the nature of human beings (espec. those is a repressive society)
BERNAYS
- press agent employed in public info in ww1 working with propaganda. post war set up 'the council on public relations' - birth of PR.
- he theorised that any animal desire that a thing could be linked to you can make a false need for that thing (i.e product)
- worked with many major companies in promotion and advertising, lead to his book propaganda.
- paved the way for product placement, celebrity endorsements, pseudo-scientific reports.
- was even involved in political promotion.
- came an emergence of desire and capital progression mutually.
- made the link between male sexual prowess and owning a car
FORDISM
- henry ford created production line - meant mass production on a rapid and efficient scale - increased productivity.
- increased prduction = increased profit so he increased workers wages = increased disposable income.
- companies began promoting specialty of their product above others - competition.
- marketing became mainly based on product to desire association. desire for power, success, sex the strongest. caused a culture shift from society needing to society wanting.
- (the hidden pursuaders book) selling emotional security (eg freezer provides emotional security of knowing theres food in house), selling reassurance of wealth, selling ego-gratification, selling creative outlets, selling love objects, selling sense of power, selling immortality.
- a new elite is needed to manage the bewildered herd. lippmann recognised political place in consumerism - if party can make the masses believe theyre secure in their ways and will always be provided for in their desires said party will gain long standing power - 'manufacturing consent'. created a synthesis between big business and government.
- if you dont re manufacture the desire people will stop spending
- lippmann started working with govt. to help emergence of mass consumerism in west but then wall st. crash then great depression so people began to recognise free market and consumerism unstable.
- roosevelt and new deal - welfare, social security etc.
- world fair - burnayes one of figures involved. basically a massive propaganda act to re-promote big business and consumerism for americans to see a prosperous future.
society based on the illusion of freedom through consumption.
Thursday 9 May 2013
OUGD406. Design Practice. Speaking From Experience.
having been introduced to the new module brief - speaking from experience i made an initial reaction to the brief. it is basically asking us to consider our main difficulties at the start of this year and, in relation, produce a helpful/advising/interesting/entertaining graphic response to that problem for next years 1st years.
from the session we did on the brief concerning our primal ideas
from the session we did on the brief concerning our primal ideas
OUGD406. Design Practice 1. Communication Is A Virus. Research and Context.
from the group meeting we were given the project theme of 10,000 steps. the understanding, decided meaning and method of communication surrounding this topic were up to us as a group and depended on the research we gathered and how we were to interpret it.
we began by thinking about what 10,000 steps could mean prior to gathering any information.
- literally 10,000 steps: taking 10,000 steps with your feet, stepping 10,000 times - i thought that it might have something to do with a healthy lifestyle before we researched it, something like getting 5 fruit and vegetables a day.
- 10,000 stairs: places or buildings with 10,000 stairs in them.
- 10,000 steps as tasks: steps as in guides/methods to achieving something. step 1 - do something, step 2 - do something else etc.
- 10,000 steps as a route: walks or routes that took 10,000 steps to do.
from these intuitive pre-conceptions we went online to gather secondary research that would help us to understand the theme and in turn our concept.
according to research i found online, and as advised by the nhs, people should aim to get around 10000 steps a day to maintain basic fitness and health. 10000 steps can help improve your cardiovascular, lower your colesterol and weight, produce positive endorphines and improve your overall health. by walking an average of 10,000 steps a day you can exercise a range of muscles that you can neglect if driving or taking the bus etc.
The average person walks between 3,000 and 4,000 steps per day, and 1,000 steps is the equivalent of around 10 minutes of brisk walking.
A person weighing 70kg (about 11 stone) can burn about 440 calories by walking 10,000 steps briskly (3.5mph).
The amount of exercise that is recommended depends on your age. Adults between 19 and 64 should get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity – such as fast walking or cycling – per week.
so the nhs advises that 10,000 steps a day should maintain your basic healthy lifestyle in terms of physical activity. i found this an interesting concept as most people know and understand the recommendation of eating 5 fruit and vegetables a day as part of a basic healthy diet but it isn't nearly as well known about the physical activity side of it. i found it surprising that the nhs hadn't done more to promote this as a campaign like you see with other campaigns on tv. if people were to make an effort to include 10,000 steps into their daily routine the country may see a rise in health and fitness.
The British Heart Foundation (BHF) says 10,000 steps a day (about five miles) can give you a healthy heart and reduce body fat.
"If pedometers stimulate people to walk more frequently, that would be fantastic and could make a real difference to the nation's health."
An average walking speed is about 5 to 6 km/h (3 to 4 mph). It would take about an hour and 20 minutes to walk 5 miles.
Step Length: The distance from the heel print of one foot to the heel print of the other foot. This is the distance traveled forward by a single leg. An average that you will see listed in many places is 2.2 feet (0.67 meters) for women and 2.5 feet (0.762 meters) for men, but it depends very much on height.
You are not likely to get a useful value, based only on the person's height.
Surprisingly, height is one of the least relevant factors affecting step
size.
Step size (p - pace length) is determined by walking speed (v - velocity)
and pace frequency (c - cadence):
p = v / c
i.e. pace length equals walking speed divided by cadence.
Observe a column of soldiers marching - regardless of their height they will
be "in step". Thus they will be moving at the same speed, cadence and pace
length - regardless of their different individual heights.
i think the above information is really useful and intelligently presented. it is true that height does not really come into play when considering the length of a step. so i decided to test the equation.
it takes me approx 25 seconds to walk 100 metres so my average walking speed is 100m/25secs = 4m/s or 4 metres per second.
i take 48 steps in 100 metres so my average pace frequency is 100m/48stps = 2.08stps/m or 2.08 steps per metre.
so my pace length would be 4/2.08 = 1.92ft.
i think this size might be about right but im not sure that i used the equation correctly or did the maths right so i dont really know if this is correct but i measured by stride from standing a few times and it came out at 1.3ft, 1.5ft, 1.3ft, 1.4ft, 1.4ft. so from this i decided that my maths was out but it was still interesting and useful and theory and to find my average step distance which id say is around 1.5-1.6 feet.
The average person's stride length is approximately 2.5 feet long. That means it takes just over 2,000 steps to walk one mile, and 10,000 steps is close to 5 miles.
the average step length is 2.6 feet or about 31 inches
am currently a 21 yr. old Male at 5'11" with a stride of 34.42 +/- .42 inches
Each 2,000-2,500 steps is about a mile. Walking a mile burns about 80 calories for a 150-pound person. Depending on your weight, 10,000 steps burns between 250 and 600 calories. Most weight loss programs recommend burning 200-300 calories per day in moderate to vigorous exercise.
having gathered some information about steps and distances i felt it was important to understand a bit about how a step occurs biologically, so the muscle movements, the way the leg works etc.
Walks are very complex. Not only do the feet have to move across the ground, but the hips, spine, arms, shoulders and head all move in sync to maintain balance in the system.
a step is dependant on all the necessary muscles in the body working together. as the first step is taken the muscles in the leading leg (the one in the air taking the step) contract to pull the leg up into a bent position. at this point all the bodys weight is on the standing leg which is tensed and at the flattest point that entire foot (ball and heel) is touching the ground. as the body moves forward its weight is shifted to the balls and toes of the standing foot and the calfs of that leg tense to move the body up and forward in order to carry the weight to the other leg. as the leading leg comes down towards the ground the calf muscles relax and the thigh tenses to take the impact of that leg hitting the ground. the knee bends slightly to take the impact and the foot hits the floor usually heel first. the muscles surrounding the knee of the standing leg then contract as the wight is lifted off it and the leg is bent up into a near right angled position and then the process occurs the other way round.
the body's centre of gravity lies in the hips, so all motion must be equalled throughout the body via the hips in order to maintain balance. as the hips are connected to the spine the same movements the hips make are mirrored through the spine by the shoulders but in the opposite way. so if the right leg was the forward leg taking the step the right hip would rotate forward to carry the movement of the leg. to balance this out the right shoulder would rotate backwards to allow balance and the forward movement of the right leg.
gaining an understanding or how we walk and what occurs, biologically, when we take a step helped me understand the physics and practical application of walking, especially in order to get healthy. in understanding the process of the theme of our project i was more informed and focussed in working on our project.
from the idea of promoting 10,000 steps a day in a dictatorship/propaganda style format i did some research into dictatorships and existing propaganda to inform my understanding of the styles and tactics used.
A dictatorship is defined as an autocratic form of government in which the government is ruled by an individual: a dictator. For some scholars, a dictatorship is a form of government that has the power to govern without consent of those being governed (similar to authoritarianism), while totalitarianism describes a state that regulates nearly every aspect of public and private behavior of the people. In other words, dictatorship concerns the source of the governing power and totalitarianism concerns the scope of the governing power.
The most general term is despotism, a form of government in which a single entity rules with absolute power. That entity may be an individual, as in an autocracy, or it may be a group,[5] as in anoligarchy. Despotism can mean tyranny (dominance through threat of punishment and violence), or absolutism; or dictatorship (a form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator, not restricted by a constitution, laws or opposition, etc.).[6] Dictatorship may take the form of authoritarianism or totalitarianism.
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed towards influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position by presenting only one side of an argument. Propaganda is usually repeated and dispersed over a wide variety of media in order to create the chosen result in audience attitudes.
propaganda is defined as; the systematic propagation of official government policies through manipulative communications to the public. The propaganda may provide true or false information, but the information is selectively presented in a provoking style to have its maximum emotional effect.
this example of american tobacco propaganda is great in visualising the methodology of connective points. in this poster doctors are the main focus. everyone accepts doctors as professionals who know about health and well being. you go to a doctor when you have something wrong with you and expect them to understand the problem and be able to help cure it. the poster then makes the point that in a survey it was found that camel cigarettes were the most smoked brand amongst doctors. the image of the doctor smoking makes this statement more believable and leads one to accept it more as truth. from these two separate points made (doctors being informed about health and doctors smoking camel most) the brain is lead to make its own informed connection and conclude that camel cigarettes are healthy because doctors smoke them (even though nearly eveyone smoked in those days smoked) and even though it is never actually stated this it what people are lead to believe.
this comic book poster is a more obvious example of how propaganda aims to strike fear into its audience in order to persuade a certain view of thought or a certain outlook on a topic. the fire and clear evil depicted in the poster is not an attractive sight, nor is it a desirable way of life. the poster, similarly to the previous example, makes two points and leaves the audience to 'connect the dots'. it shows an awful way of living and then introduces the idea that communism would be to blame if not for the allied war effort. an audience will instantly link the image and communism together to result in a dislike or even hatred of communism and communist states.
this anti capitalist propaganda poster shows the blunt format of capitalist society but mostly aims to appeal to the lower classes who would be most affected by capitalism and shows how they are the ones at the bottom being exploited. it communicates appropriately to its intended audience by visualising the struggle of the working class in relation to weight. they carry the heaviest load while the upper echelons of society live in ease. an unfair concept which is then exaggerated by the relation between size (few at the top - lots at the bottom) and weight (heavy load at the bottom - light at the top)
the classic propaganda poster to study is george orwell's famous 1984 'BB is watching you' poster. such an iconic use of block sans serif font and brooding imagery works because it is so simple visually and in terms of its message. another tactic of propaganda was to present the intended message so simply and bluntly to an audience that it was irrelevant their reaction because the point stood whatever. this overly confident and highly authoritative method worked in being so sincere that people had no choice but to believe and accept it. in this example people could be sceptical about whether the state could watch everyone always but the way the poster is presented and the tone of voice hint that the state doesnt care if you believe it or not, its simply informing you of that fact.
i felt it would be interesting and useful to gain some understanding of the actual length that is 10,000 steps and be able to picture it comparatively with some known routes, sights, places so its relative and not just a number.
the walk up to this buddah is 240 steps but constantly rising so your doin more exercise than if you just walked 240 steps flat. by walking it 41.6 times you would have done 10,000 steps but would have burned way more calories from the incline.
length of golden gate bridge is 2737 metres = 1.700693 miles. walking the length 2.9 times would equate to around 10000 steps.
oxford street in london is 1.5 miles long and so if you walked it 3.3 times that would equate to 10000 steps.
the height of mount everest is 8,848 m so walking its height once would get you more than 10,000 steps.
the height of the eiffel tower if 324 metres = 0.20132427 miles so walking the length of its height 25 times would equate to 10000 steps
the great wall of china is 13,171 miles long and walking its entire length would equate to around 26342000 steps meaning you would have walked 10000 steps 2634.2 times!
the circumference of the earth is 40,075 km or 24901.45 Miles so walking round the earth once would equate to 49802000 steps.
this website proved very useful as a motivational guidance tool for gettin 10,000 steps a day. http://www.wikihow.com/Walk-10,000-Steps-a-Day
having considered some initial reseach from different sites and publications it was now time for me to conduct my own research into my topic for the infographic along with general research for the project. since our project was on getting 10000 steps a day we thought it necessary to get pedometers to record the different distances we travelled inn a day and the relative steps that took.
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i was suprised to find out that after using the pedometer for a couple of days i was averaging near 10000 steps a day already and this was without even trying so we had found out that it wasnt that hard to achieve.
i recorded some known routes to find out the relative steps to distances that i know:
accomodation door to my room - 116 steps
accomodation to college - 743
college doors to studio doors - 109
accomodation to local supermarket - 442
i then went on to find some routes around leeds that eqauted to 10000 steps.
the otley run in leeds is a well known walk that is 2 miles and isnt even that far. doing this walk 2.5 times would equate to 10000 steps easily and if you do it fast (brisk walk) then it takes less than the 40 min average.
i went on to try and contrust my own route around leeds that went past some places of interest and provided a distance of 10000 steps
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