Visual Design Project- Veganism
The intended audience for this poster is made up of both vegetarians and omnivores. Because the poster utilizes dating humor, it is intended to target an age range that is the most romantically involved. Particularly, it is aimed toward those between the ages of 18 and 55, but because it uses a focal point of baby chicks, can potentially appeal to any audience that may feel sympathetic toward animals.
The poster was chosen because it is simple, reliable, cost effective, and fast. There are few elements required for an efficient poster, as it is used generally to convey a single message. Posters are reliable because they can be accessed by the audience in nearly any location. Due to the minimal resources used to develop a single, complete poster, they can be mass produced and afterward, recycled to cut down on waste. A poster also only needs about three seconds of an audience member’s time to be absorbed. There is little reading involved, and the message is received via a glance at the content. On this point, posters appeal greatly to audience members because there is no perceived investment of their time, energy, or finances, unlike, for example, infographics, articles, or brochures, which take time to read, or advertisements which most audiences are aware will request an investment by the end.
The poster functions in the basic shape of a triangle, with the main point of attention at the center (the chicks). The background is kept simple so that the bright yellow chicks hook the eye of the audience. The next most prominent feature is the header, “Chicks Dig Vegans.” When viewing a poster or rectangular piece of information, the majority of the audience will gravitate toward the top in search of a title, description, or set of words that outline a premise. After being attracted to the poster they will quickly be delivered the intended purpose. The PETA logo and approval anchor the poster at the bottom left and right and are observed on the audience’s “way out,” providing a further step for them to personally pursue the poster’s message.
The information used is inherently basic, but actually complex in its information used, and its operation and execution. The title slogan of the poster, “Chicks Dig Vegans,” is an obvious word play pun, saying that animals like vegans because vegans don’t eat them, but also that women are attracted to vegans. The pun is intended to invoke a smile or even a laugh, and after the brief pun puzzle is solved, a sense of reward. When the audience is allowed a small reward for such little effort, they may be subconsciously inclined to relate a reward with the observance of veganism. In this era, many (certainly not all) people are informed about what veganism is and what it aims to achieve. This poster recalls this knowledge base and dusts it off in the mind of the audience, perhaps refreshing their sympathies toward animals. For those unfamiliar, it is a simple and fun stepping stone aimed to lead them toward a deeper understanding of veganism by including PETA in the poster, a source where the audience can obtain a vast wealth of knowledge on the subject.
The most challenging part of creating this poster was deciding what was crucial and what was not. As mentioned, a poster functions best with few elements. However, the selected elements must be potent and carefully chosen. Wasted icons, dead end ideas, and poorly positioned themes on a poster can sidetrack the audience or lead them to confusion, thus defeating the purpose of the poster. The main image chosen had to serve as a hook and at the same time, invite the audience. The message had to be concise enough to be absorbed quickly and provide some sense of reward or gain. And the anchoring images needed to provide a source of pursuit that coincided with the poster’s message. The reward of creating the poster comes in the form of something that is fun and effective in as few steps for the audience as possible.
