I searched for images of posters and advertisements and selected these ones specifically throughout the years of the late 1800’s through to 2011 to show the differences in imagery used and the patterns followed in appealing to large audiences. The images seem to focus on specific themes from the era that they are taken from and as the years go on, the technology changes and the styles of art used are used to create these images.
The first image selected is from 1895 and the text to image comparison is quite interesting. The large bold letters that say “Modern Art” is quite comical considering the ‘Modern Art’ we currently have. It is often forgotten that our modern art is not the only art that is up to date because each piece of art was once considered modern. The themes throughout the visual culture of this time would have been popular during that time and all quite similar in order to attract attention.
The second image from approximately 1955 moves to the next sort of popular advertisement of propaganda. The use of posters, ads, and other news spreading visuals would have had a lot of propaganda towards getting the public to follow a specific movement such as war. The themes in these images involve many of the same aspects like the soldier in this one, as well as flags or national color schemes. The visual culture is used to gain the attention of as many people as possible towards something specific through these similar images and themes that are repeated and thrown into societies faces until they take action. Around the time of these first two images it would have been easier to produce ads through a massed media do to the specific ways that they were able to advertise like simple posters.
The third image also plays on more of a massed media because of its Olympic theme, which is represented at the same time all over the world, making it easy to advertise for. Although this image doesn’t use text, it is still very much understood of what the purpose is because of its use of image. The themes that are represented with the Olympics are quite popular, so they are easily recognizable even without any given note as to what the ad is for. The use of art techniques as well, are popular with the sort of cubism act and pushing limits in the art world.
The closer to current day advertising we get the easier it is to recognize certain themes that represent different niches of people in society. The fourth image I chose from the early 2000’s also has no text as to what the image is specifically about, but by focusing on choices the artist made to create this image, it becomes easy to paint your own picture as to what the ad could be for. Art has started to utilize the new technologies being created and the use of photography becomes very handy in advertising, as well as being able to manipulate these photographs. There is a lot of attention as to the specific choices the artist made, such as using a black and white photo to make the figure look even older, as well as text on the wall to represent stories being told.
The final image is from 2011 and illustrates the different style of visual culture that tends to get overlooked or labeled as being destructive because it is not put within a frame. This new sense of modern art is quite different from the rest and like the others had once originally been treated, it is met with hostility because it is new and different. It is not until taking this course that I have realized that images such as graffiti are equally as planned out when it comes to creating these pieces and making specific decisions. Technology has led to new styles that change how we look at art all the time and we are constantly trying to adapt to the changes and realize that we should be stopping and analyzing what we look at everyday rather than walking past.
