Digital Media Critical Introduction

!Taking heed from the D.I.Y (Do It Yourself) theory on going public, Julia Luptons point on addressing an audience through acts of deliberate,designed , expression is applied.

Using various products such as: a promotional CD, A4 poster, additional elements (in this case) stickers and a pencil case, A5 flyer with map, folder and design for web and mobile Vanessa Silva aims to advertise her degree show. Moreover, alongside this her overall goal is to grab ‘her’ publics’ attention, engage their interest and lastly leave them curious enough to want to know more about the concept of her theme, peace.

With the majority of the designs adopting a ‘common good’ visual that mirrors a retro vibe likely seen in the mid 60’s , the universal logo of peace and Hobo std typeface makes a recurring appearance. This is done so that all of her products are cohesive and channel the theme successfully and clearly .Vanessa continues to build on her work by juxtaposing these two components (that usually connotates bold colours and happy imagery ) with a neutrally based pallet and a simple design composition.The colours white, creme and purple accomplishes in making her intended audience think and question why this colour scheme was chosen instead. Connecting the group of people around a shared concern, thus in turn aiding them in looking beyond the theme through discussions.

The ‘Basic Design’ (Basic design; Jennifer Cole Phillips, p 29) idea of design inspiring ,inciting, impressing and informing is variedly explored from the influential presentations of Penguin books and Milton Glaser.

Milton Glasers bold and distinct design aesthetic , fused with colour and vibrancy makes his work recognisable almost instantaneously . Vanessa tries to mirror this style concept by adding little details such as border lines and black strokes around her text to emphasise it and make it stand out against her neutral pallet. These specifics should impress and inform the viewers of her products by giving them an insight into her vision which theoretically should make them want to go see her show.

In comparison to Milton Glaser , Penguin books cleverly combines aspects of visually pleasing designs such as their colour coordinated collections that inspire their audience to want to have them all. For both reading and display purposes. Influenced to want her viewers to take in all her promotional products Vanessa features snippets of white space in her simple design to ‘control the shape,volume, and placement’ of it (Basic design; Jennifer Cole Phillips, p 30). This in turn adds emphasis and impact in more of restraining way thus intriguing her audience and encouraging them to find more of her products to appease their thirst for information.

As a whole Vanessa silva achieves her project intentions by making crucial and deliberate design decisions that both express her style aesthetic and reaches her goal of engaging people with her theme of peace and products alike.

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