Who was so engrossed in creating her invitation that she completely forgot about all this other C.R.A.P? ME, that's who!
The images in this post were taken from this week's issue of Rolling Stone. I definitely had some trouble finding a figure/ground ad that fit the bill, so I settled for this ad for React chewing gum (admittedly, a compromise). On the page, the background gray is actually much darker. There are so many things going on here at once, and the tension between figure and ground lies not between the background and the "Rorschach" but within the "ink blot" itself. The very contour of the shape pulls your eye into the page, and the dog and panther inside give the image depth. There is this illusion of tunneling, as though the shape were recessed inside of the gray background. Whichever of these things first impresses upon the viewer may vary, and that's the point of the tagline.
I could give a hoot about Lauren Conrad (I had to look up who this person was. Aren't I supposed to have, like, the slightest idea?), but I think this ad has fabulous composition. I see alignment not in the cardinal sense but in the diagonal sense. The figure forms such a nice X, with Milk (the reality) and Milk? (the question) on opposing north westerly and south easterly corners, respectively. There is also a lot of repetition going on, especially in terms of hues: the mushroom gray of the background matches her dress, the gold of her shoes matches her hair, and then there's the text and the product in question. My favorite thing about this ad, though, is the way the splashing milk makes its signature in space and how that same fluidity is present in her flowing hair. What an awesome photo! I want to believe Photoshop did not have a role here, but . . . wishful thinking on my part, perhaps.
No comments:
Post a Comment