Here are some examples of compositions I have been creating using my pictograms so far! I love the variation in style that you can get from a somewhat limited selection of images. As an exercise the results and possibilities are endless and I feel I’ve created my own little visual language. I have included 6 images here to discuss as they have such different content varying from being quite dark to quite humorous.

The first image of the foot and the foetus can be interpreted as being very dark. I felt compelled to include the foetus both because of a personal interest and that as a symbol it represents potential. With the threat of it being crushed by a giant foot you can’t help but feel nervous for the thing, but similarly it would be interesting to see if substituting it for another pictogram would provoke a similar reaction, would you feel as bad if it were a woman being squashed? Or a heart? Who knows! Something to potentially follow up.

The Images in the middle are supposed to make you feel quite threatened, the man and the woman surrounded by knives look very vulnerable. But in comparison, the man and the woman also look quite threatened by the toothbrushes. It may confuse the viewer a little more, but the composition is threatening and therefore the toothbrushes are as well.

The final two images are very contrasting. Having recently quit smoking and realising how much good it has done for my breathing and so, in a very self-righteous manner, I made this wonderful anti-smoking ad! I joke, however it does make you think about the implications. The image of the kettle full of bananas is suitably obscure. I think for my final piece I would like to make a book full of the 20 images of a world that slowly descends into chaos. I’m really enjoying working on adobe illustrator but I do miss the tactile elements of working with physical work. I might look at reverting back to collaging for the second half of the project.

    

After extensively experimenting with my pictograms I have finally settled on these thirty! I cut quite a few, including one of a cat that, whilst adorable, detracted from a coherent ‘humanity’ theme. I’m also aware that things like hearts and brains aren’t something that you’d come across on a day to day basis but I want to have images that provoke emotive reactions. The weight behind the images of foetuses and lungs will add a depth to my final compositions that just can’t be achieved with drawings of cats.

I’ve used my newly learnt computer skills in all aspects of this project already! After scanning my drawings I processed the images in photoshop and have lifted them out of it using the Magic Wand tool before transferring them into Illustrator. I have been considering making a ‘Semiotic Pictogram Dictionary’ on Indesign and then threading it together in the book arts workshop, as a more professional way of presenting my final pictograms.

Animal: Brain, Hand, Foot, Foetus, Eye, Ear, Man, Lungs, Heart and Woman.

Mineral: Toothpaste, Toothbrush, Fork, Lightbulb, Knife, Kettle, Mug, Scissors, Tap and Television.

Vegetable: Banana, Apple, Lemon, Onion, Cigarette, Beer, Pear, Houseplant, Tomato and Wine.

 

 

After perusing the various pictograms that Pinterest had to offer, the particularly effective ones all seemed to use objects with very generalised use and universal relevance. I decided after this to record what the first 10 things I picked up in the morning were, to see what objects were woven into my every day routine. I picked up first my phone, then proceeded to make my morning coffee with my mug and kettle, followed by making my lunch and brushing my teeth. Therefore my first ten objects were my phone, kettle, mug, coffee, knife, chopping board, bread, toothbrush and toothpaste. As a result of this exercise I decided to make a language using my pictograms that could be contained within the home.

I went for a coffee with my friend Liza after making my decision, who studies History of Art at the University, and after explaining my ideas to her she explained a school of theory called Semiotics. Developed by Roland Barthes, semiotics is the study of symbolism and the ideas engrained historically in them. For example Barthes explored the portrayal of wine in French society. It’s promoted in the French bourgeois society as a signifier of a healthy habit, however contradicted by certain realities. These insights aligned Barthes with certain Marxist theories, some of which we have been exploring in Critical and Cultural Studies. i.e. the fetishism of commodities.

I think it would be interesting to explore how I can great a coherent language that, whilst using very ordinary objects, has a weight to it that makes it more significant than the value of its parts. I do however think it’s essential to my theme that I make sure the pictograms centre around day-to-day activities carried out my most people.