Design Evaluation

Pointe Shoe Advertisements 

I have been dancing for the majority of my life and have seen some pretty terrible advertisement for dance products. I originally got the idea to use this topic of dance products from a terrible dance wear commercial that was produced recently for free people dance wear. I ended up using advertisements for pointe shoes.

Good

I think this ad definitely appeals to the target audience. It shows a dancers on stage alone giving the idea that she is a soloist or principle dancer, which is the ultimate dream for many dancers. Without having to do anything else the product is already appealing to the target audience. I also love the simplicity of this design and the clarity of the context of a ballerina in the spotlight on the stage. I think the two most fundamental gestalt principles that this ad follows are the law of pragnanz because of the simplicity and clarity, and the law of continuity because of the way the dancers lines flow. 

Bad 

This ad has been around since I was very young, and I have always hated it. I think it is cluttered and confusing. The dancers are spelling out the companies name with their bodies, and even though this ad does follow the law of closure because of the way their bodies make the letters. However, I personally think it is awful. If I didn't know what the company was trying to sell I would probably be confused because this image doesn't really give much context. The people could be dancers or circus people I don't really know. In addition to that from a dance standpoint the lines of this picture are technically not the best. They are more turned in and not really technical ballet positions, which throws me off completely and makes me less interested in the project. 

Contrast, Balance and Harmony

I took this picture one morning from my back porch in Idaho, and for some reason I have always really liked this image. I think that now I am realizing it is because of the visual elements that are featured in the picture.

Contrast: There is a lot of contrast in this image. The first thing I noticed was the contrast of color because it was taken at sunrise there sky has contrast between the cooler colors at the top and the warm colors closer to the sun. The mountains and the snow also provide a black and white contrast because the mountains were in shadow from the sun they look very dark, which I think helps the snow look whiter and more pure. There are also a lot contrasting textures in this image. The softness of the clouds compared to the sharp bubbly texture of the icicle and the jagged mountain line. The smooth sections of snow and the parts that have tracks though them also give textural contrast.

Balance: This photo graph is very a-symmetrical. However, I think that the elements of the picture have are balanced by a sort of mirroring. If you take the image and split it in half horizontally the colors are balance out by their mirror image. What I mean by that is the warmth of the colors by the sun is balance by the darkness of the mountains and the cool colors in the sky are mimicked by the color of the snow. This mirroring provides balance throughout the entire background of the photo, and draws the eye to the focal point of the image, which is the icicle.

Harmony: I am actually surprised that this image gives me the felling of harmony because I generally dislike images that remind me of feeling cold. I find them harsh and unforgiving, but this image is very peaceful to me. I think a large part of that is due to the sunrise and the smoothness in the transition of colors. I also think that this picture looks very untouched. there is so much simple natural beauty involved with the landscape, the sunrise and the icicle that I think the image reminds me of innocence. Every color and detail of the picture seem to be working together and that makes the final project look so crisp and so complete that is is difficult for me at least not to feel peace while looking at this image.

Law of Continuity

This picture of lightning illustrates the law of continuity because of individual bolt is shooting through the smoothest path. The smaller bolts that are meandering off of the main sections give an impression that the lightning could continue growing and expanding in all directions of the sky, and because it is coming from the clouds the lightning does not have definite boundaries.

Visceral Response

I chose this picture for my Visceral Response because I have very strong emotional response when I see this image. This is The Freedom Tower in New York City it stands where the World Trade Center buildings use to be. Obviously with that knowledge this building is inherently going to make people feel something because of its connection with 9/11. This photo was taken from the FDNY Battalion 9/11 Memorial which is located near the 9/11 museum.

I think this photo has a really very interesting lines. The first line that draws my eye in is actually the flag, which due to the angle leads the eye up to the tip of the tower from there my eyes follow the lines of the triangular shape back down the tower. The horizontal lines in the building shift my eyes back over to the furthest to the right building, which has vertical lines that take the eye back up to the flag, so  I think that the lines give the photo some circular movement. Color also plays a huge part in this photo because of the colors of the flag are already associated with so much symbolism, and I really like how the colors of the flag are mirrored by the blue and white of the sky and clouds. I think this chromatic blue, silver, and white color scheme really helps the red in the flag pop and immediately draw attention. I think that the shape of the triangle in the towers design is also interesting because I associate that shape with masculinity this give the image strength in my mind. One of the most interesting elements to me in this picture is texture because there is the great smooth crisp texture from the steel and glass in the buildings, then there is texture of the flag rippling in the wind, and the softer texture of the clouds in the sky. The reason I think the texture are so interesting though is because of the way the building is reflecting the clouds. I think this texture give the building a softer more organic almost ethereal quality, which really lends itself to the ideas of this monument.