Persuasive Poster... Upgrade Your Leftovers
14 -20 August
In my university class (DVB201), we were prompted to create a persuasive poster to support an environmental cause. I chose to explore ways to promote reducing waste, specifically in relation to food waste. One of the biggest issues I identified was the amount of food wasted by the average household.
I brainstormed ways to specifically address this as a persuasive poster to an audience of families with young kids (35-55 year-old parents with small school-aged kids). To appeal to this audience the poster design needed to be eye-catching. To make the poster more persuasive, I thought it should also provide a way to benefit the families in some way to encourage them to be more mindful about their food waste by reusing what they have instead of throwing it away.
Images 1, 2 & 3
Materials:
2B Pencil
Eraser
Fineline Black Pen
Process: Based on the problem I outlined, I brainstormed specific poster designs to address the issue of food waste. I landed on the idea of exploring how households use leftovers with the catchphrase "upgrade your leftovers". I further developed 3 of these ideas by drawing more developed sketches of them to narrow down design options.
Drawing Technique: pencil sketching then outlining the design in Fineline pen
Reflection:
It was challenging to come up with poster ideas that branched beyond the typically used imagery to communicate. Image 16 (first sketch) was my least favourite. The image of putting scraps in the bin wasn't a unique design and didn't really communicate the message I wanted it to and the composition was quite bland. Image 17 (middle sketch) was my favourite, I thought the design was simple, eye-catching and communicated the message I wanted to. I like the composition of it and how the image of food in the centre really draws your attention to it and I think the text layout is effective in the composition too. I liked incorporating the QR code to the design which would go to a website with recipes or information of reusing food. I liked Image 18 (last sketch) as well, the arrows pointing to the other meals effectively communicates the idea of reusing leftovers from one meal in another. There were a lot of components in this composition though and I think it looked a bit cluttered in comparison to the clean, simple composition of Image 17.
I chose Image 2 to develop further.
Image 4
Materials:
Copic Markers
Photoshop
Process: Expanding on Image 2, I drew the bowl of spaghetti using Copic Markers. I then took this drawing to Photoshop to add the text and complete the poster design.
Drawing Technique: Copic Markers, proportion
Reflection:
I enjoyed using the mixed media of drawing and Photoshop to complete the poster. In this final design of the poster, I chose to make the text straight instead of curving with the edge of the plate. I think the composition loses some of its playfulness by doing this. I used triadic complementary colours (purple, green, orange) to make the design eye-catching so it would draw people's attention. The use of colour is important to draw the attention of children who may be with their parents (target audience of Families) and the message of upgrading leftovers specifically speaks to the parents. I find Copic Markers a bit challenging to work with in drawings like this (I prefer them for just shading), however, this was still a good exercise to use different media. I like the way the composition is clearly broken into three parts (the text at the top, the picture, and the text at the bottom), it makes the design coherent and easy to look at, therefore making the message more prominent by encouraging people to look.
Image 5
Materials:
Coloured paper
String
Black Pen
Scissors
2B Pencil
Eraser
Process: I turned my finalised poster (Image 19) into a collage using coloured paper. I found items to use from around my house and I cut out the paper to make the shapes. I paid attention to how I layered the elements and tried to create different textures to make the composition more interesting and add dimension.
Drawing Technique: Collage
Reflection:
This was a fun exercise, I haven't experimented with collage much before but I enjoyed this hands-on process for something different. I found some parts frustrating when the string didn't sit exactly how I wanted it to but it was still a good exercise and an interesting way to approach the poster. I chose to use more vibrant colours in the collage and I really liked how playful the final poster looks, especially with the pairing of the curved text at the top. I also like the depth the shadows and texture give the design. I could've been more precise in how I cut out the collage elements but I still like the final poster and I think it is my favourite iteration of this poster concept.
