Thursday 30 April 2009

Sunday 26 April 2009

Marmite


I have created the altered logo in illustrator.

Saturday 25 April 2009

First Obstacle

As I have to identically replicate the labels and I therefore need perfect copies of the labels
But with many established products they are on rounded surfaces
I have started with the Marmite Jar - And though scanning the image and keeping the part of the label flat on the scanner bed I have finally managed to scan the full label with out mistakes.

McGraffiti

mcspotlight.org
The biggest, loudest, most red, most read Anti-McDonald's extravaganza the world has ever seen.

Here are a few of the things they have done

Semiotics

What is Semiotics about?

SEMIOTICS IS
“concerned with everything that can be taken as a sign” (Umberto Eco 1976)

WHICH CAN TAKE THE FORM of words, images, sounds, gestures and objects

ALSO the discipline that studies the capacity of humans to make, disseminate, and understand these signs

BUT involves the study not only of what we refer to as 'signs' in everyday speech, but also of anything that 'stands for' something else…

Basic Lines in Semiotics

General
semiotics is considered as the theory of the production and interpretation of meaning
meaning is made by the deployment of acts and objects which function as “signs” in relation to other signs

Social
it examines semiotics practices, specific to a culture and community, for the making of various kinds of texts and meanings in contexts of culturally meaningful activity

Multimedia
is based on the principle that all meaning-making necessarily overflows the analytical boundaries between distinct, idealized semiotic resource systems such as language, gesture, depiction and action

What does it mean?
ALL THE INDIVIDUALS ARE MEANING-MAKERS

?
WHY

...Because we interpret things as signs unconsciously by relating them to familiar systems of conventions
Peirce, 1931

Dyadic Model

SIGNIFIED - the idea being represented
SIGNIFIER - the word doing the representing

The sign is the whole that results from the association of the signifier with the signified


Signification example



Link to whole presentation -
http://www.cs.uta.fi/~e_tg/Semiotics.ppt

Proforma

Student Name: Robert Connor


1. Project Summary
The project is to re-create print based packaging to test the reactions of supermarket shoppers with twists to their everyday products. The idea consists around altering consumer experiences and the curiosity that follows estranged products that appear familiar at first glance.

2. Context
Product design is a skilled profession and good design it part of making a product saleable. Popular brands have established identities that have been around for decades and alter their branding subtly over time.. They are also seen as the superior brand compared to normally cheaper alternatives. Shopping is performed on a weekly basis and so therefore our memory of product designs are second to none. This also includes the bombardment of advertisements, which we see on the TV and other signage. We no longer have to read the labels of a regularly brought product as our semiotic view of the product already knows exactly what we are looking at.

3. Rationale
In general, we are stuck in set daily routines and regularly recurring eating habits. We rarely experience new food on a weekly basis because as adults we are very much aware of our taste palate. My idea to alter packaging is a way of enhancing the shopping experience whilst they chose their familiar products. Graphic Design is all about producing new graphics and improving on previous designs. I shall be taking a slightly different angle by altering designs to read as unrecognisable adapted designs.

4. Skills Evidence:

Topicality and future projection potential
In the future I do not see myself working in just one field of graphic design, I would like to think I am an all rounder with a strong interest in Typography.

Intellectual rigour and debate
Food is a product that will always be needed to sustain life and with so many products available we are constantly bombarded with the new alternatives. These alternatives seem to always have less artificial ingredients and less salt content but still the same great flavour, but all of these small changes allow the products to surface at the forefront of our mind when buying our food.

Focus of research and analysis
My main focus of research will revolve around sustainable brands that our semiotic view of the product is well established.

Practical skills involved
Identical replication of products
Manipulating the products so they appear the same
Instant Photography skills as time scales may be very limited.

Sustainability and Content of project
With only just over 5 weeks till completion I have a huge task to replicate a large quantity of designs, which will then need printing on and placing in situation.

Projection of professional or further research ambitions
I am a perfectionist with my work so I aim to create unnoticeable alterations to the product designs. I hope that this will lead onto branding in the future with increased interest in your semiotic view of a product.

Elements of risk and challenge
My main risk is being able to flash mob the aisles to stick my altered labels onto the products. There may also be a problem getting my items printed on the right media sources.

Predicated outcomes
Set of images
A collection of my Altered Products

Manufacturing and production issues
With only 5 weeks I have large amount of print work to produce which will then need to be printed on the correct media.