Talking of advertisements
I was provoked to write this small piece on design… Provoked by the discussion on an advertisement I was witness to this week.
I just draw your attention to four aspects that we are likely to ignore:
First, the space. You cannot fill all the space of a page layout or an advertisement, thinking that you are able to say more in the same amount spent. If that were the case, the Google homepage would not be that clean but be cluttered with advertisements, if not other content!
Second, the flow of lines. Don’t the lines going up and to the right denote growth vis-à-vis those in opposite direction? Plants grow tall, children grow ‘up’, sun rises, charts depict higher values up and right… Then, why do we place arrows going from right to left and steps going down when in an ad graphic we try to depict growth?
Third, colour. No lecture on the theory of colours. Let me just let you imagine what looks vibrant to you. Don’t we find flowers and freshly rain-soaked leaves more lively than mud and dirty foliage? Don’t plump babies with pink cheeks look more full of life than their malnourished counterparts or the aged? Then why do we use so much of dark shades, especially blue and grey [as in gentlemen’s formal jackets] while projecting good times?
Fourth, symbolism. Do we need to always put a beard on a face to say it is a Muslim face, or Himachali cap on a head to tell it’s the head of a hill guy? When talking of a diverse and peaceful India, do we need to put oft-repeated icons of the four main faiths of India? Why do we insist on hackneyed symbols or icons when we need to give a universal message? Even a niche ad need not carry symbols that give a narrow / uncharitable tag to racial / religious / regional identities, isn’t it?
I just draw your attention to four aspects that we are likely to ignore:
First, the space. You cannot fill all the space of a page layout or an advertisement, thinking that you are able to say more in the same amount spent. If that were the case, the Google homepage would not be that clean but be cluttered with advertisements, if not other content!
Second, the flow of lines. Don’t the lines going up and to the right denote growth vis-à-vis those in opposite direction? Plants grow tall, children grow ‘up’, sun rises, charts depict higher values up and right… Then, why do we place arrows going from right to left and steps going down when in an ad graphic we try to depict growth?
Third, colour. No lecture on the theory of colours. Let me just let you imagine what looks vibrant to you. Don’t we find flowers and freshly rain-soaked leaves more lively than mud and dirty foliage? Don’t plump babies with pink cheeks look more full of life than their malnourished counterparts or the aged? Then why do we use so much of dark shades, especially blue and grey [as in gentlemen’s formal jackets] while projecting good times?
Fourth, symbolism. Do we need to always put a beard on a face to say it is a Muslim face, or Himachali cap on a head to tell it’s the head of a hill guy? When talking of a diverse and peaceful India, do we need to put oft-repeated icons of the four main faiths of India? Why do we insist on hackneyed symbols or icons when we need to give a universal message? Even a niche ad need not carry symbols that give a narrow / uncharitable tag to racial / religious / regional identities, isn’t it?
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-Stephen Galang