Design Success and Failure in Relation to Syntactical Guidelines

The designer of this sign failed completely. The proximity or the kerning between the letters are too tight that it is completely misinterpreted. The size of the store name is incredibly large in proportion to the blue rectangle surrounding it. It creates a huge stress on the words which has completely turned against the store and gave it a whole new meaning. Had the font been smaller and modified in its composition, the rectangle bigger, and the kerning looser, this could work because it would give the designer more space negative space that he could utilize, along with good typography, to create the right amount of stresses by possibly making one of the words bigger, such as mega.

Project Red works with a large amount of companies to raise money for Aids in Africa. This is an ad for their partnership with Nike. Visually, the main subject, which is the man holding up the red laces in a pattern to create Africa, is composed in the rule of thirds for visual interest. This also frees up the left side for text. There is negative space on the bottom left, below the text, to emphasize the rule of thirds composition as well as make it easier on the audience to comprehend the simple, yet abstract message it is sending with the use of laces for nike's representation and Project Red's aids message with the use of the color red and the Africa shape.

Visual vs Symbolic Language

• sad
• forms
• lines
• aperture/ shallow depth of field
• hand over mouth
• disappointment
• bulk lay-off
• realization
• crossroads to their next step

This photo invokes a feeling of sadness. The only subject in focus is the man in the front who has his hand over his mouth in disappointment. It looks as if he is in shock and at the same time, thinking about what he should do. Everyone behind him carries yellow forms. I'm assuming it is a massive lay-off because they all have the same form and although everyone is blurred out because of the depth of field, the man in the front that is in focus clearly expresses shock and sadness. In essence, the group has just come to the realization that they are now unemployed and they walk with their heads either low, or they stare at this odd yellow paper in disbelief that they have just been laid off.

Week 3: Interactions between the levels

Representational - Symbolic - Abstract

Council Tales won an award for their annual report in 2009. By the overall look, it is very representational of camping. The impact of its representation is that the company invests enough in its representation that it is willing to go the extra mile to translate that into their annual report. It shows the dedication and improves the credibility of the company.

The items chosen to package the annual report in and with are very symbolic of the outdoors and camping. Although the mini sleeping bag and tent are not actually functional in a real camp setting and are used solely to house the annual report, the flashlight comes fully functional and includes batteries. The impact of the symbolism involved with these items give a sense of encouragement to explore the outdoors. The company even provides a flashlight as extra incentive.

The packaging of the annual report uses the sleeping bag as the sleeve for the report and the tent and the entire packaging to house all of the items. The abstraction of the use of the tent and sleeping bag as a means of packaging shows the creative intentions behind the company.

Through the interaction of all 3 levels, the viewer is provided with enough information about Council Tales to know that it is communicating ideas of the outdoors and camping. The overall look and feel represents it, while the items symbolize the action. When they are all combined into the packaging, abstraction takes place and without even opening the annual report, the viewer gets a sense of fun and adventure through an outdoors experience.