Assignment Six

Identify and illustrate the distinctive features of the visual styles of Calvin Klein fragrance ads in magazines and discuss their contribution to visual branding.

Some Spoof CK ads

NB: These are not real CK ads but examples of subvertising.

Guidance

For general guidance see the guidelines for writing essays and reports.

What Key Features Do I Look For?

  • Familiarity with relevant texts
  • Evidence - the stronger the better
  • Argument - coherent and balanced
  • Theoretical discussion - relation to relevant theories
  • Understanding of relevant concepts
  • Reflexivity - reflections on methodology
  • Examples - insightfully analysed
  • Style - readability and effective presentation

Please remember to avoid footnotes and to include an alphabetical list of 'References' which have been cited in the text (not a Bibliography of anything you have read for the essay). This list should include author's names, date, book titles (in italics), place of publication and publisher. Within the text always cite author's surname, date and page number. Double-space your text and number your pages. For more detailed notes on writing essays in this department, click here. For examples of essays by UWA students click here.

Advice for this particular assignment: If you feel confident in doing so, it would be useful to try to apply some key semiotic concepts, such as the commutation test. You may consider more than one CK fragrance, but try to see what ads for the same fragrance have in common. You may also, if you wish, refer to fragrance ads other than those of Calvin Klein if this helps to establish the CK style but do not devote too much space to such examples. Explore the various connotations of different visual features, checking any hunches by soliciting other people's reactions to the ads (preferably those in the target market). Consider the nature and significance of the photographic codes employed: lighting, focus, composition, etc. Does the photographic style have anything in common with that of any other well-known photographs? Can you usefully relate any of Goffman's findings to these ads? Are there any distinctive 'body language' codes? What about clothing codes? Refer also to typographic codes and to the use of colour. How does the style of these ads relate to the visual branding of Calvin Klein products? You may refer, for instance, to design and packaging issues. Consider any differences between ads targeted at women and those targeted at men. Some commentators have noted that in CK ads aimed at men, there is a significant homoerotic element - is there any evidence of this? (CK deny specifically targeting gay consumers). How might this be relevant to visual branding? If you have any information about target market demographics, discuss its relevance to the visual style of the ads. What do the ads have in common with other ads targeting similar demographic groups? The key resource for obtaining copies of CKs ads is at http://pobox.upenn.edu/~davidtoc/calvin.html. Where possible, try to find out more about the photographers, models, art directors and so on. Why do you think they were chosen? You may find it of interest to note the various 'spoof' versions of CK ads because these suggest what some commentators identify as distinctive in the CK advertising style. However, beware: some students mistake some of the spoofs for actual CK ads (see examples above); such an elementary mistake would lose you marks. Note: do not slip into 'preaching' about the 'effects' of such ads on the self-image of consumers. You may, if you wish, refer briefly to relevant TV commercials but this is not necessary for this assignment. Note that this is an assignment for which the inclusion of relevant and carefully-chosen pictorial illustrations is absolutely essential. As well as full-page scans, carefuly-selected cropped details from ads may be useful to help to make some points. Label each illustration thus: 'Figure 1' (etc.). Wherever possible, include details of the magazine(s) in which each ad appeared, together with the date. An acknowledgements section at the end (not counted towards the word count!) should list the source of each Figure.

Some suggested reading

Note: Treat with extreme caution sources labelled with this symbol!

Relevant Weblinks

Key Module Links

Assignment Deadlines Archive of Student Essays for This Module MCS Archive of Student Essays
Semiotics for Beginners Assignment Feedback Form General Criteria for Assignments General Guidelines for Writing Essays


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