Viral Violence

adsoftheworld.com

The image above is a ad that is against viral violence due to all of the social media bullying incidents that have resulted in the loss of children's lives. To me this really hit home, because I've been growing up in the start of social media and it becoming a problem. Also, I like many have been a victim of online bullying (obviously not as extreme as other cases). This a contemporary design that uses photography and a minimalist approach. It is very blunt towards what it is about. It uses photography (with some effects and what not of course) to really draw you and pull at your emotions. I was pulled in immediately because I was curious what the picture was of, only to realize it was what seems to be a dead child who may have been pelted by phones. I finally fully connected the dots whenever I read the text message-like box that reads, "Don't share the hate." Although the image can fully explain the the idea of the ad, I feel like the textbox is necessary because it is a strong but short statement. With it, the design still remains very clean as well; it doesn't interrupt the photograph due to the placement. Although this design is for/from Guatemala, I feel it should be publicized in every country. It would really get across to kids that what they are doing is taking lives from other children.

Psychedelia Features

adsoftheworld.com

The design above is an advertisement from Brazil that promotes learning English, since it is a more universal language. in the description it explains, "Of course speaking another language helps your career. Who else kisses up to the boss in two different languages?" The company Yazigi is like Rosetta Stone except it teaches English. Of course I had to do some research on the company and found their website. Whenever I went to it, it is strictly in spanish. 

I was really drawn to this ad because of the play with the type. The type reminds me a lot of the Psychedelia style. The type uses a lot of kind of like tendrils that branch off the letter forms into swirls. Overall the text isn't made to be legible, which is a major characteristic of the Psychedelia style. If you take notice to what's going on towards the edges of the design, it has some silhouettes of different animal/creature-like figures. Silhouettes is another characteristic of the Psychedelia style that was pretty popular.  

Coffee

adsoftheworld.com

The design above was created by a Turkish design company that is pro coffee. In the description is says, "Coffee is a perfect solution for a scattered mind." In some cases this is true for people and sometimes not. I was drawn to this ad because of how distorted the photograph is and it is definitely not easy on the eyes. Although this a newer design, it reminds me a lot of deconstructivism. Deconstructivism style does exactly what it sounds like, it "deconstructs" or takes apart the elements to make it look morphed and not completely recognizable. 

Pantones

adsoftheworld.com

Above is an ad for "Rabel," a skin bronzer from Saudi Arabia. This image caught my attention because it was labeled "Summer Pantones." The image uses different pantone color slides (like the ones you would look at in the color books or when shopping for paint) to create an image of a part or a tan woman on the beach. I remember in my classes talking about Pantones and looks at the color books. This design uses those little color slides in a very unique way like the images that uses a bunch of other pictures to create one big one. I have always really liked that concept, but this seems a bit more unique. This design remains very clean even those there are so many different colors and their labels. Although the design is from another country, the design is also straight to the point to what it is about. I really enjoyed this contemporary ad.  

SWA

sagmeisterwalsh.com

Above is an identity I had found for a project in another class for a project I did on Stefan Sagmeister. I decided to blog it because it is a very creative and successful contemporary design. SWA is a landscaping company and knowing this is very helpful (hints the mountainy letters). The play with the text in this is a great example of illustrative text as well. Also the design is very clean but also has that jagged mountain feel; that's impressive that those two characteristics can be in one design.

Guitar

Printmag.com

The image above is of a  stationary set, plus more, that is another winner for the regional design aways for Print. Overall I thought this was a very simple and "to the point" identity. The guitar-pic logo was a great choice and it is a very recognizable item. 

Forestry

Printmag.com

This design kind of caught my eye because I use to be in FFA and forestry was a CDE (in other words plant/tree competition). I really like the design because of its play with mixing  borders, type, and illustration into almost like a logo. Although it is really kind of clean, symmetrical, and nicely spaced, the building in the design doesn't make much sense to me. Also tho too, I didn't look for any background information this time and it is hard for me to see all the small type.