Week 2 - Session 2 (Thumbnail Development)

In studio, we were able to share our current thumbnails with our peers and get feedback on what is working and what can be improved. My thumbnail appeared to be too literal so I was given the advice to find symbols or substitution images to convey my idea in a more metaphoric approach. I looked into the three forms of rhetoric and found some inspirational posters and imagery to help give me some idea on how I can develop my thumbnails. In my thumbnails I looked into several negative aspects of social media such as addiction, strangers lurking on the net, distractions and being isolated from society. I originally wanted to go for the "stranger-danger" idea but as I developed my thumbnails more further, I got intrigued in the idea that addiction to social media creates isolation. I began to look at metaphoric images that could possibly portray isolation and addiction, and then choosing a few that I like so I can move on to creating my poster digitally and getting feedback next lesson. 

Some of the images I found for addiction are: 
pills, 
cigarette, 
syringes, 
hook,
plugs,
cables

Some of the images I found to represent the outside (social) world:
sunny day, 
windows and doors to act as a barrier
photographs
sport - football
keys


Looked into some more poster ideas that uses substitution/addition.

Week 2 - Session 1 (Thumbnails)

The lecture we had today discussed the useful elements that artists use to make their poster stand out, yet persuasive at the same time. We focused on layout and colour and how altering it can portray a completely different meaning. I tried to keep this in mind when starting on my thumbnails. 

During studio time, I shared my images and posters that I had collected through my mind-map. I was able to get some good feedback from my peers on how they interpreted the images and what elements that they thought was useful. I started to plan my thumbnails, keeping in mind the feedback I got and using the images as an inspiration to help me get started. I played around with scaling to make my view point stand out. 

Week 2 - Session 2 (Independent Research)

In today's lesson, we were split into groups for a class debate. We were either for or against the topic: social media, superstores or voting. I was placed into the social media group and we decided to go for the idea that social media is not anti-social. This exercise was quite helpful as I got to see the different view points from others and their perspective on social media. 

After the lesson I was once again struggling with my decision with social media as both side of the debate presented valid points. I decided to do more independent research to make my final decision on whether I wanted to go for or against social media as I wanted to move on and explore specific areas within my stand point. In the end, I decided to stick with the idea that social media is anti-social. 

To further unpack the idea of Ihi and Wihi, I decided to look at posters that is similar to my topic and started to break down the idea of the imagery and colours used to portray a message. Many of these posters have a bad reaction against social media, and the ideas that I was able to generate through these images became a starting point and inspiration for poster ideas. I also decided to make a mind-map of words relating to my topic so I can find images for my poster. 

Week 1 - Session 1 (Getting Started & Observations)

In the first introduction lecture, we had an overview on the concept of Ihi and Wehi. We also looked at several images/videos and had to discuss in groups on what the imagery and type is trying to convey to the audience, relating it to the concept of Ihi and Wihi. Throughout this process, I had a better understanding of what the concept is and how to further unpack posters/images. Using the similar skills we had discussed in the lecture, I could apply it to my work later on to create a successful poster and convey its intended message to the audience.  

After class, I decided to go with the idea of social media. However I was not sure on whether I wanted to be for or against the idea that social media is anti-social. I did further research on both the pros and cons of social media to help me decide on what approach I wanted to make.

Articles I looked at: 

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/wanganui-chronicle/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503423&objectid=11165196

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/02/fashion/02BEST.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Opinons from others: 

http://www.debate.org/opinions/can-social-media-make-you-anti-social

Videos: 

(The Effects of Social Media on Society and Marketing) 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vqb8nKbOo-c

(The Social Media Revolution 2014)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eUeL3n7fDs

(Facebook's Secret Psychological Experiment)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXsNh7QV_4Y

(Look Up)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7dLU6fk9QY

Others: 

http://www.jeffbullas.com/2014/01/17/20-social-media-facts-and-statistics-you-should-know-in-2014/

http://outthinkgroup.com/tips/the-6-types-of-social-media

The websites explored and observations I made around Wellington helped make my final decision - agreeing that social media indeed makes you anti-social. The stats I found regarding to users and social media has grown exceptionally since 2 years ago and I found that a majority of people in Wellington is always on their phone, if not, they are either holding them or are in hands-reach.