IXD304 – Art Direction Article Review

In this blog, I will look at a few articles that Kyle has recommended about Art Direction by Dan Mall and Stephen Hay. I will be covering and reflecting on the articles while also giving my own opinion on such material.

In a 2010 blog post on Alistapart, Dan Mall talks about the chaotic nature of the term ‘Art Direction’. Many people confuse it to be the same as regular art, however, although similar they serve as two separate purposes. For me, art direction is a general use of repeated and coherent artistic mannerisms that expresses value and clarity in media that evokes a cultural and emotional connection.

However, Dan explains that art directors are responsible for the combined look and feel of a product e.g. films. A great example of these would be ‘I AM LEGEND which uses the signature golden hour tinge throughout their film which gives it that unique creepy ‘calm before the storm atmosphere’.

A brilliant example of difference and meaning by Dan Mull,

“If I tell my wife that I love her, but say it with a frown on my face, she’ll get mixed signals. If I say it nonchalantly while watching TV, she might not fully believe it. But when I say it with a genuine smile and a bouquet of flowers, my meaning is clear. “

In this example, his love is art direction while his smile and the roses are designed. They are mutually respective of each other, design is perfection in technique while art direction is about the emotional touch that injects itself into design. I like to think of design and art direction as a flower – design being the peddles that create platform/clearance and nectar being art direction. Without either one, the plant may fail to succeed.

A diverse range of media uses art direction to ‘narrate’ their work. Magazines are a brilliant example. They employ visual imagery and language to extend the meaning of a story. There is extreme detail in the ideation and production of this visual narration. Art Directors and copywriters spend extremely lengthy periods on how to enhance and implement art direction in their design. This can be the overall style of the layout, selecting related content features, or the tone of voice of a story.

Dan Mull has created an efficient yet simplistic guide to explain the difference in art direction and design. He explains art direction as a mental representation of visual expression while design is more of a physical representation of itself.

Dan Mull proceeds to then ask a few friends for their opinion on what art direction and design are. I have picked two of the best explanations that describe it perfectly.

“Design is about problem-solving, whether you are a designer or an art director. The two roles differ in that the designer is more concerned with execution, while the art director is concerned with the strategy behind that execution.” – Phil Coffman, Art Director, Springbox

“The act of designing is different from the act of art directing. Art Directors are supposed to provide the concept. Designers are supposed to bring ideas to the table and implement the concept. However, it is important to point out that it is almost never that black and white. Designers do art direct and art directors do design…. In my experience, the process is much more collaborative. The ideas inform the concept and vice versa.” – JD Hooge, Design Director, Gridplane

From the explanations above we can get a clear understanding of the differences are and what both entail. Most of the quotes understood that design is the paper and art direction is the pencil (in my terms). They are both closely linked and conduct similar yet collaborative work to produce something more connecting and unique.

An assignment borrowed from Happy Cog, Dan got students to pick a random piece of paper from each of three hats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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