Stupid Girls? (Semiotics: Image As Language) 23/11/11

Semiotics: Image As Language

This lecture was spent looking at the music video, Stupid Girls by Pink. Stupid Girls won several awards due it's very-out-there approach to media, patriarchy, feminism and Body image. There are many scenes in the video that some may find offensive because they can be quite graphic in nature. I personally like the video because Pink chose to unmask issues which we as a society, tend to ignore or pretend isn't there. Despite the strong message in her video, she still manages to entertain her audience and add a chunk of humour to the music video.

Before I deconstruct the video and analyse it, I'm going to explain and discuss what Semiotics are. Semiotics are mainly based around signs and communicating through a symbols, icons, etc. This can be done in a variety of ways. The reason we chose to focus on Pink's music video is because of the way she presented several different images using each of the following semiotic approaches:

• Iconic
• Indexical
• Symbolic

Now, I'm going breakdown the video slightly and discuss some of the key semiotic points that I noticed in the video. 

Scene 1

Here, in this early scene during this video, you can see what is called a Symbolic and Iconic sign. Where the young girl is sitting, she has two heads floating above either side of her. This sort of image is usually associated with the good and bad side of the "spiritual realm" in a religion. Most Europeans associate such images with the Devil and God who are icons in the Christian faith. I believe Pink chose this image to do the scene in this way in order to illustrate how the girl must choose between what is right and wrong. 

The reason why it was easy for me, or anyone else familiar with western culture, to recognise these images as the Devil and God is because we are familiar with the different ways each image was represented in the scene. For example, the angelic figure on the right was surrounded with clouds, white colour and softness which is usually what we as westerners relate to goodness, heaven and angels. The Devil however, was surrounded in fire, a deep red colour and her facial expression was harsh which is what we as a western society associate with evil, hell and demons. 

In eastern cultures such as Asia, they may not recognise or understand such symbols as the Devil and God. For example, Buddhism does not believe in such things as hell or the devil. Rather, they believe in karma and suffering for a brief period for your sins. Therefore, when seeing an image of the devil in the scene above, they may not recognise or understand why we believe fire and the colour is so evil. A symbol or icon may come across looking the same physically but it will always be useless unless someone actually understand the meaning behind it. 

Scene 2

I have included two captions from this scene because I spotted two separate semiotic points. In this first image, you can see the woman is flipping her hair. Flipping your hair is usually associated with being young, flirtatious and feminine. In some ways, flipping your hair can even be associated with sex. This is what I believe is called an indexical sign. I'm certain that this sort of action is not common worldwide because as I mentioned before, a sign is meaningless unless someone understands it. In places such as west Africa, flipping your hair is usually connected to childishness, restlessness and fidgety behaviour. I also noticed how the scene was set somewhere in the early 1950s where feminism was not very widespread and women were still taught to "behave lady like". In some parts of the world, there are still schools made especially for Girls Etiquette. I believe Pink purposely chose to use a 1950s set scene because this was a time close to the 1960s "freedom of women" era. In my opinion, she didn't over exaggerate the scene, she simply added humour to an action that we as Western society still practice today. 

Here, in this image, you can see the same woman biting her nails just seconds after she flipped her hair. Biting your nails is usually a sign of bad habits and, in some cases, stupidity in girls. The fact that this part was included in the scene just seconds after she flipped her hair, illustrates how Pink wanted to show that despite all the "suffocated" flirty actions, this sort of behaviour is only practiced among girls of lower intellect. I believe this is an indexical sign that should be quite recognised in most places around the world. I would say that western countries connect it more to bad habits. 

Scene 3

This is one of the most entertaining scenes of the entire video in my opinion. I say this because of the fact that she was able to clearly mock another music artist (50 Cent) without mentioning their name. In this scene, you can see that Pink is still in the video but she makes herself seem almost unimportant and to an extent, scarce. She does this by wearing a black hat to cover half of face and faces side ways to ensure that the camera is focusing on the male rapper rather than herself. In this short scene, there is an almost endless list of signs and symbols. I believe that the way in which she presents herself in this scene and purposely tries to make the male rapper look superior to her is known as indexical text. She's making it obvious how modern rap and hip hop music have exploited women in many ways. The way she dresses also represents that message. 
Her tight tank top and leather shorts are usually associated with sex, prostitution and promiscuous behaviour. Also, the setting for the scene is quite dark and "mysterious" and I believe that they purposely chose to use a dark, street like setting for the scene as such places are usually related to gangs, urban music and ghetto estates. In a way, this can be considered as iconic text. But like I mentioned earlier, the setting just look like a normal dark street to someone who may not be familiar with western culture. They may not understand what the ghetto looks like in the western world as we may not understand or recognise what the ghetto looks like in the eastern world. 


Scene 4
This is probably the most icon scene in the entire video. Pink is stood on a high platform, dressed formally and looking as if she could be a potential politician or president. Either way, she looks as though she is in high power. The the camera angle is pointed makes it seem as though we as an audience are below her, therefore illustrating that she in control and we  are in a lesser position. I believe that this scene illustrates an iconic text and also an indexical text. The fact that she was stood on a high platform with was looks like the American flag behind her, is what I'm recognising as an iconic text. All the presidents of America have been considered an icon. Also the flag being represents America which I also believe is a iconic text. As I have mentioned previously, this scene may come across as meaningless to those who do not understand or recognise the american flag. Although, I'm sure that most people will understand the sort of message she's sending across in this scene because of the way she's dressed, her posture, facial expression and the way she clenches her fist as if to say that she is in control. 

There are more scenes that I would really like analyse from the video, but you can see where I'm coming from when it I'm describing the semiotics in this video. There are messages in everything we see around us, especially media, art and design related areas. Please click on this link http://estherakinola.blogspot.com/2011/12/hes-at-your-window-signs-semiotics.html to read an analyse of another video that I selected. 

Japanese Subculture! (Part 2 What Is Fashion) 02/11/2011

Japanese Subculture

日本のサブカルチャー

Recently, we've been discussing a lot about culture, fashion and what is right or wrong in terms of art. Today, I read an article discussing Japanese subculture. It explained how their style and trend has developed over the years and the reasons behind it. The article was called 'Street Style and It's Meaning In Postwar Japan'.

What I found particularly interesting was the fact that they separated each group in a similar way that Britain does. We, as a culture, have a habit of separating specific groups into categories according to their taste in clothes, fashion and music. The article compares the similarities of subculture with that of Britain's and explains how though we are two completely different countries and in different continents, we still possess similar cultures to some extent. In the following I will be discussing the areas of the article I found the most interesting.


Youth Tribes (Zoku) 
According to the article, Zoku is a word used to describe subculture in Japan. Because there is no clear definition or concept of the word 'Subculture', Japan has come to associate it with youth, music and media. Zoku is more or less a group of young people keeping up with the latest trends and fashion. As time progressed, new words were invented in order to label a new group of adolescents following a certain trend. For example, in the late 1950s a new group of Zoku emerged and these were motorbike gangs; the Kaminari-Zoku. This means the Thunder Tribe because of the loud noises coming from their motorbikes on the streets.They were thought to be groups of teenagers trying to imitate the British 'Rockers & Greasers'.
It's unknown whether or not they have the same view of teenage fashion as we do in Europe and America. From what I've read in the article, Zoku have been associated with crime and deviancy in the same way Britain portrays teenage culture. So, I'm unsure as to whether or not Japan recognise youth fashion as culture or just rebellion.I found this part of the article very interesting because it was something I knew I could relate as a young adult in today's modern world. Society fails to understand youth culture so instead they conjure up assumptions and conclusions instead of asking questions and attempting to understand. 
 I personally believe that media played a significant role when it came to the description of subculture in Japan. 


Bosozoku (Anti Middle Class Style Of The Late 1970s)
I found this area of the article to be the most interesting due to the fact that it discusses teenage behaviour in relation to culture and fashion trends. It compares the way in which media portrays teenage culture in Japan and the way teenagers literally behave in their modern culture. 
To illustrate Japanese adolescent behaviour, the article used a popular group in the 1970s known as the Bosozoku. These were a group of teenagers who were said to have descended from the earlier 1950s biker group known as the Kaminari Zoku which I mentioned earlier. The difference between the Bosozoku and the Kaminari Zoku is that the younger generation were more rebellious and less interested with fitting into society. These teenagers were a distinct group. They were easily spotted and identified due to their unique clothing. For example, they wore clothes that were given nicknames associated with frightening wear. These were clothes such as ToKkoFuku which meant 'The style of suicidal Kamikaze Party.' I'm assuming that the Bosozoku gang's intentions were to come across as frightening and intimidating. In comparison to today's modern cultural groups, there are still groups which try to protray themselves as intimidation and dangerous for a number of reason. 

The Japanese Bosozoku were known to be high school drop outs who originally started off in normal gangs. These were to the teenagers who were normally associated with the more violent bike gangs. According the Globalist.Com, "Bosozoku bike members are much more carefree than violent. They are full of life, teenagers dedicated to the sublime intensity of youth. They are not the violent criminals that are portrayed in the Japanese media....". I liked this quote because, as I mentioned earlier, teenagers are portrayed as rebellious and troublesome according to the media. Therefore, despite the fact that this article is meant to come across as factual and evident, I believe that without actually going out there and getting involved in youth culture, one will always lack understanding about it. 


Overall, these were the two areas of that I found the most interesting. This was mainly because groups within teenage culture fascinate me and it's something I can relate to. 

What Is Fashion? (Part 1) 02/11/2011

FASHION

As a group, we discussed what we believed fashion was and created a list among ourselves. Here is a short list of some of the key points that I felt stood out the most:

• Fashion is an expression
• it's culture
• it's wearable art
• it's liberating
• it's expensive
• some like it and others don't

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to what each person felt fashion was. When it came to actually discussing what we thought fashion wasn't, there was a dramatic shortage of answers. Here is a short list of what we thought fashion wasn't:

• Fashion isn't the clothes we wear
• Fashion isn't a necessity 
• Fashion is not our survival wear

This is something I would have never realised or thought about when discussing fashion. I found it fascinating how we all began discussing how fashion has changed and evolved over the years due to cultural acceptance, music and history. 

We looked at a series of images that were supposed to be fashion related. Some of the images were of women wearing clothing that could transform into pieces of living room furniture. I personal thought to some extent, the outfits on show were fashionable but not exactly wearable fashion. To my knowledge, there are two different sorts of fashion; the fashion that appeals to a mass market and then there's the fashion that can only be admired but never worn. This brings me back to a point that I made during our discussion. I mentioned that fashion was "wearable art" because there are moments in the fashion industry where some pieces aren't intended to be worn but simply admired and displayed. For example, the image you see above is of a woman wearing a skirt that instantly turns into a table once she steps out of it. As I mentioned in one of the points, fashion is not survival wear. The clothing you see in the image above is not necessary wear. We don't need it to cover up or keep warm and unless our society and culture decides to change dramatically, I highly doubt it will ever appeal to the mass market as wearable fashion. 

Culture was also a big issue when discussing what fashion was. We discussed how Britain is such a diverse country and how there are many different groups who express themselves through fashion in multiple ways. Our fashion depends on our financial state, our social peers, our geographical location and culture. I personal think that one might see a clear definition of the different fashion groups when looking at a younger generation of people. We also discussed how one may portray themselves, through fashion, as something that may not directly indicate the sort of personality they possess. For example, a girl dressed in dark coloured clothes with piercings all over face may not be as intimidating as she looks. This brings us back to the point I mentioned earlier about expressing yourself through fashion. 

Our culture influences the way in which we dress in so many ways. For example, I dress in modest attire because that's how I was brought up. In my home, we were taught that women who wanted to get married to a respectable man should dress respectably. It's not something that I personally believe but because of my culture, that is how I dress. Where we come from, modesty is fashionable. The more you cover up, the better it looks. I believe that it's the same everywhere you go in terms of fashion. 
Please Continue To Part 2 of What is Fashion? http://estherakinola.blogspot.com/2011/11/japanese-subculture-part-2-what-is.html

What is Graphic Design? (28/10/11)

What is Graphics?

This session was spent looking at the history of Arts and discussing what we thought Graphic Design actually was. There were many different thoughts and opnions as to what Graphic Design intailed and what it was used for. Here are some of the key points that stood out to me the most:

• Advertising
• Marketing Material
• Posters
• CD Covers
• Logos

Each one of these points were what people from other areas of creative practices thought graphic design was. From this session, we learnt that graphic design dates back many years ago and started purely from basic art. Graphic Design is a fairly young form of art due to the fact that in the early 1900s, art and design were not separated into any multiple categories. They were all simply combined into one and was called art. 

We spent time looking at real definitions of graphics and one that stood out to me the most was a quote that read "…as an art form, graphic design is viewed only from an aesthetic perspective, without enough consideration of communication and social significance". 
This got me thinking about people who are not so knowledgeable about Visual communication. The way in which others may see visual communication would definitley be different the the actual designer themselves.
We also discussed the quality of graphics when it comes to communication with the public.

Is the image still useful if it is not communicating in the way that it should be?
There were mixed opinions and answers to this question as many people felt that graphic design should be considered as an art, therefore if it not communicating well, it should still maintain it's quality. Others believed that graphic design is visual communication, therefore if it is not communicating a message, it's useless. 

London 2012 Logo? (28/10/11)

The London 2012

Recently, there has been much controversy surrounding the new London 2012 Olympics logo. I've spent some time browsing the internet in search of articles and creative reviews sites discussing the design of the latest 2012 logo. The article which caught my attention was the London Metro; the article was titled "The Blogosphere is Angry!" and also included the subheading "The internet has seen the 2012 logo and frankly, they don't like it". 
The Article consisted of a short list of quotes from different social networks and blog sites. Each one expressed what they thought about the logo and, not to my surprise, those who genuinely liked the logo were a minority. "The London 2012 Logo looks like bad stone age art" - DFL; Twitter. From this quote, I can tell that some may think of the logo as old fashioned because of the eighties style edged shapes and the use of vibrant colours. 

  

Here's an image of what the present logo looks like. In my opinion, the logo didn't come across as anything special or particularly interesting. Surprisingly, I am quite disappointed with the design this year as I am usually quite impressed with the Olympic campaign designs. In comparison with the earlier Olympics logos, this one looks too complex, busy and almost old fashioned. Once I looked closer at the logo, it reminded me of something from the early nineties which isn't exactly a good look for a modern event. Although I may have these opinions and many people may feel the same way as I do about the logo, I'm almost certain that after a few years or less, people will start to warm up to the design. Art that usually causes some sort of uproar eventually develops a supporting fan base because it go so much attention. 
Here is a series of different versions of the 2012 logos. For one some reason, the logo comes in a variety of colours.