OUIL401 End of Module Evaluation

1. What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?

I feel as if my ability to research and collect relevant information to put into a project has improved; I now understand where to find academic resources, and what research would be useful, rather than just finding loads and using it all without having a focal point. Before, I would just research and find anything that would be of even slight use - the essay required us to dig properly and narrow down what would be applicable and informative. I feel like I have applied these fairly well, but it took a while to understand what would be useful and not just create a essay full of irrelevant research that rambles. I have also learned how to properly Harvard reference, a tool that will no doubt be useful in the future.

2. What approaches to/methods of research have you developed and how have they informed your practical outcomes?

After scouring the internet for useful material for a while, I found that online journals and newspapers are very useful for research, as they are often opinionated and gave something to oppose or agree with in the essay. I also enjoyed going to the library and finding academic papers and books that could possibly relate to my chosen subject; I found some really useful and interesting writing that then further shaped my ideas and made me question what I was writing about even more. Research has been undeniably important in this module, not just for the essay but for the visual diagram, where I was inspired by other pieces and illustrations that I wouldn't have found otherwise.

3. What strengths can you identify within your work and how have/will you capitalise on these?

I feel I have been able to look at another practitioners work and successfully analyse it, from referencing its purpose to  how effectively it has been made and how successful it has been as a result. This is important as it has furthered my ability to be able to break down my own work, think about what it is saying and how I can help it communicate. I also feel  that my visual diagram is relevant to my research and does communicate an idea, something I have struggled with in the past, and it is probably due to the amount of research behind it. I will continue to research more to inform other projects and hopefully they will have the same outcome.

4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these in the future?

Looking at my work, I feel as if the concept for my visual diagram was initially a bit vague and I struggled to narrow it down to something informative and interesting. Although I am pleased with it now, it could definitely have much more to say. I also found it very hard to work out how I was going to turn my essay into something visual, and I think this contributed to why the transition was a bit all over the place. Next time I want to choose a subject that has lots of obvious paths to go down with lots of research behind it and hopefully I will be able to create a volume of work that has much more to give. I want to give people something to think about with CoP, not just spell out what we already know, which might be all I have done.

5. Identify 5 things that you feel will benefit you during next year's context of practice module?

1. Not to put this module to this side and leave everything to last minute; just because it is drawn out does not mean it is ok to leave it! This will hopefully mean I am more interested in what I am doing.

2. Blog more often; I found it hard to understand what to blog for this module, as I thought it would all be repetitive, but now I understand that seeing my thoughts written down can unscramble my head when I get stuck for ideas.

3. Find a subject that I am really, really interested in; this year I picked something and just thought 'yeah, that'll do' - not a good idea for motivation at the end of the year. I want to write about something I feel really passionate about and I think it will come across more in my work too if I am.

4. Talk to tutors and peers if I become overwhelmed and stuck; this has been the hardest module to make sense of and I think talking to people would help me realise what I am trying to do myself much earlier on in the year.

5. If I read anything interesting, make a note of it; you never know if it could come in useful later on when looking for references or inspiration.

Final Visual Diagram

Considering I have been struggling with how to turn my research into something visual, I am really happy with how this has turned out. After asking a few people what they thought, I decided to call it 'A Guide to our Future Selves', to sort of spell out the idea I am trying to get across (that we all might regress into back creepy monkeys who are more glued to their phones than we even are now). I am planning to print it on semi-gloss to make it look like a proper poster, and might do another on thick matte to compare. I was unable to screen print due to there being too many people with higher priority in the print room, but I tried to keep the colours flat and bold as if it were a screen print - plus, I have been able to add more colours than if it had been screen printed anyway. 

Positives:

1. I am happy with the composition.
2. I am happy with the colour scheme.

3. I am pretty happy with the type (something I'm usually completely rubbish at).

4. I am happy with the concept! Again something that usually isn't my strength - after double checking with other people I know it gives across the message I want (a sort of comical exaggeration of how much we sit on our phones).

Negatives:

1. Maybe could have practised a bit more at using the grey pen; in places in the front monkey with the yellow phone it looks a bit weird, and it didn't fit in when Photoshopped.

2. Bottom right corner annoys me a bit where the white space is (but just being picky). 

3. Could be argued that we are already like this, and it's not the future?!

Final Essay

Are Gig Posters still Relevant to the Promotion of Music in the Internet Age?

In the current social and historical climate, it is almost impossible for most people to go a day without looking at some sort of screen or digital device, whether it be mobile phones, tablets or laptops. These devices give us twenty four hour access to the latest news and events via apps and social networking sites, saturating us with the latest relevant information designed for us based at what we have been looking at. A big part of this information is now visual, in the form of videos, photos and illustrations, most of them commissioned and made specifically for screen viewing. The demand for this is increasing every day, as new apps and websites are being created, and we are getting more and more used to looking at images in this form; it is the go to way of finding pictures. Photo and picture sharing websites such as Instagram and Pinterest lead the way alongside search engines like Google Images, giving us access to thousands of the same version of one image. However, amongst all this instantly communicable and reproducible imagery, the desire for tangible pieces still exists, and is even on the increase.

To focus on one industry which processes masses of imagery digitally, the music business has seen a massive comeback in the past few years of consumers wanting tangible artwork, in particular posters and vinyl cover designs, that they can keep and collect for themselves. Why would this be, when a lazy generation can find any picture or music video they want from device in their pocket? It’s not like the music industry needs physical imagery to get noticed when it dominates are large portion of the internet, from Top 40 lists to sites dedicated to new bands and releases. Many would argue that it could be an oversaturation of the digital; people turning away and wanting to go back to how it was before, when posters and flyers were used to advertise music events and bands. This would be more easily explainable for the older generations who have not had internet access their whole lives, but the younger are also showing a massive interest in owning these physical designs. Has digital given value to “the hand-made, the detailed and the patiently skilful over the instantly upgradeable and the disposable"? (O'Hagan 2011).

It has been argued that posters are like a kind of affordable ‘gateway’ art for consumers, “street level, accessible art” (Hasted 2012). Owning your own artwork is usually something most people cannot afford to choose to spend their money on, but now this is changing. Even limited edition hand printed posters only sell for around $75 maximum original price; it’s like the designers are trying to give people the option to have these pictures. Bands “don't have a 12-inch gatefold sleeve now; they have a 600 x 600 pixel picture on iTunes” and “posters give them an outlet” (Hasted 2012); they are commissioning more and more artists and designers to create them one-off artworks for gigs tours, therefore giving the consumer a much wider selection of pieces to hang on their wall. Bands are wanting to have great, one-of-a-kind gig posters, and are using the limitations that come with digital sales to create newer opportunities.  All of this in combination with that we now look at pictures all day every day means that music posters are flying off the shelves, from mass produced re-printed ones to hand crafted originals. The poster scene is “a way of bringing back something beautiful into a digital world” (Hasted 2012) and everyone can be a part of it.

Bands are also using the increased interest in gig posters to give themselves more of a niche, or a sense of style; “iconography is visual” (Hasted 2012) and it is not just about the music any more, it is the visuals which go with it, and the right poster could promote exactly what they want the consumers to see them as. At the end of the day, gig posters are an advertisement, and a great one could be the difference between a make or break gig for bands just starting out. Jean Paul Gaultier has been known to state “Sometimes I have chosen to see films just by their posters”, and the same could apply to many for gigs instead. For example, the Arctic Monkeys in particular have developed a massive following for their collection of gig posters, now some of the constantly most desired by fans and collectors. Even if you weren’t a fan of their music, you could be a fan of their poster and want to be a part of their style and potentially even attend the event, giving them more exposure.

A good example of how the Arctic Monkeys use posters to give them something extra is the poster created by Dan Stiles (2014) for a gig at the Artpark Outdoor Amphitheatre in Lewiston, New York. It would have been a massive event, as the Arctic Monkeys are currently one of the worlds most popular and well known bands, especially in America. It is also very current, as it was made in the summer of last year. The target audience for this poster is very wide, as the popular tour it was created for had seats for thousands of people per gig. It appeals to both male and female viewers of a wide age group, by depicting the silhouette of an attractive lady in psychedelic, sixties looking colours and patterns. The majority of the lyrics within the bands songs are based on women, so the poster is literally visualising what the band is 'about'.  The vintage connotations also link directly to the band, as they currently have taken on a more old fashioned look themselves, and gives the poster a more fashionable edge. This would also help the appeal towards the female audience; the only detail on the silhouette are a pair of vintage sunglasses and pouty lips, looking like the kind of editorial illustration you would find within a fashion magazine. The male audience would be (more obviously) drawn into the bold image of a woman with a sexy figure. The graphic look of the poster enhances this, drawing attention to how she has been designed with an exaggerated hourglass figure; what men historically deem as ideally attractive.

The colours involved within the poster reflect the time of year when it was published; sunny yellows, hot pinks, bright blues and clear greens all hint at the idea of summer. It is a feel-good poster, probably even drawing in the eyes of passers by who are not fans of the band. It is an image of mass communication about the band; bright, bold and relatable. The poster has been very well designed, as it does it's job perfectly as a bright and eye catching advert, linking directly and indirectly with the music and look of the band, and the fashionable themes of 2014.

This poster exists physically in a series of 130 limited edition screenprints, bringing back the essence of handmade quality for the more passionate fans and collectors (of the band and artist alike). "Today, our lives are so taken up with tweeting, blogging, browsing and networking that the time it takes to master a trade or a musical instrument, is time many of us think we can no longer afford.” (O’Hagan 2011) Does this mean we are appreciating the skill behind creating beautiful images more than we did before, in analogue methods that are less widely used? Combined with the musical element of the band the hand made posters are advertising, it makes the whole image a representation of skills to be admired. It can be easily argued either way whether the digital age has provoked a backlash into using these analogue methods again, or if they were never stopped being used and the internet has just given us a gateway into promoting the older ways; many popular poster artists, such as Drew Millward, create work digitally but still distributed physically as limited edition prints and are equally in demand for commissions. Perhaps it is a combination; “The poster, with its mix of both low-tech and high-tech, of old and new, has become a cornerstone of 21st century advocacy" (Reznick 2013). Images now will always be able to be accessed anywhere, so what is it that is the difference with these posters - compared to a piece of clip art made in five minutes, a wonderfully crafted poster with hours and intent put into it gives it something extra, and that is what people want.

Many believe the internet has fully helped kickstart the new poster age rather than replacing the need for physical posters, by just doing what the internet does - making sure everyone using it sees them. Popular websites and blogs such as GigPosters.com, created by Clay Hayes, ensure the growth and accessibility of being able to view the newest and most popular works, by the most renowned poster artists. A great example would be Leeds based Drew Millward, whose popularity has soared globally thanks to fans of the bands (his clients) sharing his work on social media. "With the steady growth of broadband connection, a full-color poster can be created as a digital file small enough either to send by email or to download from a website set up for the purpose, and printed by the recipient in as many copies as necessary or simply passed on digitally.” (Reznick 2013). We now indeed have the modern ability to be able to share things that catch our eye to the world in a matter of seconds, but why has this resulted in an increase in the demand of physical prints? Again, it must be due to the allure of craft. A person can view a poster on their screens, but it will never be the same as the original production; now that more people can view a thumbnail image and browse online libraries such as Gigposters.com, they want the real thing, or as near to it as they can get. However, just because a poster is being viewed on a screen does not mean it isn’t a poster, and the demand is still there; “digital production technologies has expanded the poster's role well beyond the limitations of the printed surface." (Reznick 2013).

It isn’t just modern music posters that have made a big impact; the original Woodstock Festival poster has becoming something iconic. Designed in 1969 by Arnold Skolnick, it is quite basic compared to the stylised posters of now, with much more text involved. It is interesting to see the difference between this poster and the ones that have been created after the invention of the internet. It has been made for printing, not screen, and it shows in how the colours come out before editing; it looks dull and lacks in contrast. It portrays a dove sitting on the neck of a guitar, next to the text ‘3 Days of Peace and Music’; basic but communicative symbolism to get the intent and feel of the festival across. It is clear, bold and graphic, and very obviously of it’s time, with the block shapes and bright colours. It has an air of authenticity, and when knowing what Woodstock became afterwards, a sense of nostalgia. The philosopher Walter Benjamin stated “The authenticity of a thing is the essence of all that is transmissible from its beginning, ranging from its substantive duration to it's testimony to the history it has experienced. Authenticity is jeopardized by reproduction when substantive duration ceases to matter" (1999). It is the reproductive nature of the internet that arguably devalues a piece of work, and again why the limited printed editions are seen as more worthy and desirable. In reproduction and printing you loose elements of the original piece, such as textures or exact colours, so even mass produced versions of iconic posters will never be as beautiful. The Woodstock poster is authentic because of the history behind it, something the average Instagram photo of somebody’s dinner does not have. Consumers now want to see authenticity.

"We haven't lost romance in the digital age, but we may be neglecting it. In doing so, antiquated art forms are taking on new importance.” (Kutcher, 2014). There is something about the ideals of romance that can be linked with authenticity; a hand written letter, or an original, sepia-toned photograph, both romantic yet authentic. Is this also the underlying appeal for a beautiful and original screenprint - old methods, combined with a one-of-a-kind piece, made with the artists own hand? These pieces feel more honest, with analogue methods leaving room for mistakes that cannot be instantly undone. When a piece of work has a sense of the artists soul about it, or ‘Aura’ as Walter Benjamin calls it, it becomes more precious and strangely romantic, and again authentic. Digital communications are often openly laughed at for being so unromantic and antisocial, with newspapers satirising scenes such as people texting and checking Facebook on a dinner date, or creating pieces about ‘hookup’ sites such as Tinder; it’s not surprising that people are calling todays world unromantic. As a result, in this world where we can interact with so much that has so little soul, are we finding new ways to satisfy cravings by turning to these affordable and accessible artworks, that someone has put their mind, opinions and talent into creating?

In much more recent times, the band Ok Go commissioned a poster for Alex Todaro for their Lincoln Hall, Chicago gig, which is interesting to compare to the old Woodstock poster. It is very different in that it features almost no type, just the four faces of the band members with the name wound into them. The colours are also different; a white background with rainbow shades leaning towards pastel. However, it uses the same simple approach to image making as Skolnick’s poster; basic shapes, arranged to make an image, and kept very graphic. It is like a modern twist on the old posters in the Woodstock era, but keeps the authenticity by reflecting vintage style; new ideas with a nod to the old. Ok Go are a band who widely use the internet to promote themselves, by creating original and very visually interesting music videos that go viral. They put time and effort into these videos so it is fitting that they have created a set of beautiful posters to go with them; launching themselves from two very different types of platform. To see this kind of highly crafted gig poster produced in limited edition prints again suggests that it is a combination of the old and new working together to kickstart this surge in interest in poster artwork.

It is difficult, and possibly too early, to properly argue one single point as to why the demand for handmade, limited edition music merchandise has taken a sudden soar in popularity. There are many reasons not even touched upon in this essay that don’t really relate at all to the digital uprise; for example sub-cultures like ‘hipsters’ ever expanding who collect and show off their one of a kind pieces to each other, or the growing popularity of the music and arts scene in towns and cities, who didn’t especially have much of one before. However, from researching modern newspaper articles, online journals and referring to older philosophers writing, it is apparent that people will not always completely take to new digital advances and have a certain amount of wanting it back like it was ‘in the good old days’, whether it be the smartphone-obsessed population of today, or the phobic of the new moving image back in the early twentieth century. We should all take advantage to explore and enjoy the wonderful art and music that is being created around us every day, where there is something for every taste and genre, and many people seem to realise that; and after all, the affordable and accessible poster “universally communicates, connects and delivers its message to anyone in any country" (Lewis, 2012) - a new way of connecting to each other, without doing it digitally; a universal language without using Google translate.

Bibliography

• Fig.1, Skolnick, A. (1969) "1st Printing Concert Poster" [poster] U.S.A, RecordMecca. (http://recordmecca.com/item-archives/woodstock-festival-1st-printing-concert-poster/)
• Fig.1, Stiles, D. (2014) "Artpark Outdoor Ampitheatre Poster" [poster] U.S.A, Gigposters.com (http://www.gigposters.com/poster/168262_Arctic_Monkeys.html)
• Fig.1, Todaro, A. "Lincoln Hall Chicago Poster" [poster] U.S.A, Gigposters.com (http://www.gigposters.com/poster/169025_Ok_Go.html)
• Hasted, N (2012)  "Ultimate Pop Art; Why Gig Posters are a Sound Investment" [internet] U.K., The Independent (http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/ultimate-pop-art--why-gig-posters-are-a-sound-investment-7827640.html)

• O'Hagan, S. (2011) "Analogue Artists Defying the Digital Age" [internet] U.K., The Guardian. (http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2011/apr/24/mavericks-defying-digital-age)
• Reznick, E. (2013) "How Posters Survive and Thrive in a Digital Age" [internet] U.S.A, Phaidon. (http://uk.phaidon.com/agenda/design/articles/2013/july/15/how-posters-survive-and-thrive-in-a-digital-age/)
• Gaultier, J.P. (Date Unknown) “Poster Quotes” [internet] U.S.A, BrainyQuote (http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/posters.html)
• Kutcher, A. (2014) “Digital Quotes” [internet] U.S.A, BrainyQuote. (http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/digital.html)
• Lewis, A. (2012) "What is Social Poster Design?" [internet] Athens, Greece, Graphic Art News. (http://www.graphicart-news.com/what-social-poster-design-is-7-significant-poster-designers-advice/#.VH7_8FbN7fU)
• Benjamin, W. (1999) "Illuminations; The Work of Art in an Age of Mechanical Reproduction", 2nd Ed., London, Pimlico. (pg.215, 218)