Halo

[MightyMouseLBC]

Photo from my high school basketball game. The school asked me to make a spirit campaign poster and this is how it turned out.

[MightyMouseLBC]

Make sure to tell me what you think.

[Ollie]

anyone pointed out it could be considered racist?

[phase04]

Originally posted by MysticalFish
anyone pointed out it could be considered racist?

i thought the exact same thing....

[MightyMouseLBC]

That was the best picture that I had. So I'm actually sort of appauled at the ammount of (reverse) racism that is still going on. For you to depict my picture like that bothers me It also is going to change anyone elses oppinion who looks at it. Had it been the other way around I doubt you would have even thought that. My whole entire school which is 55% African American thought it was great, because the African American guy on the opposing team is their star player. Not to mention the fact that the opposing teams mascot is the "Fire" and my school's mascot is the "Avengers". I guess as a society we still have to get over the fact that we are not seperated purely by black and white. You really should look at the picture for what it is (art) and not a hate crime because it isn't. I feel truly sorry for anyone who thinks of this in such a fashion it is a true sign of someone who looks at the world and finds hate .

I'm sorry for anyone this has offended. I still don't believe that this is anywhere near a racist form of expression. It saddens me that people still think people would do such things.

[Ollie]

i said some one could, not that i did consider it rasist.
i agree with what you said about reverse racsim (and sexism), it pisses me off too, but i was looking at it out of context, i have no idea who these people are, or what team mascots are, so for the people who gonna see this it will look appropriate. you asked us for our opinion, and sorry mate it was'nt the artwork that jumped out at me initailly, it was the black being conveyed in a darker evil way, whilst the white person beinging an angel in a scene of tanquility. as an artist when i see images i question the intentions, and represenations.
and had it been the other way round yes i would have noticed and said the same thing.
we have no idea who you are, for all i know you could be dipicting a reflection of you own minorities difficulty within your community.

you must appreciate the face value of images to the rest of the world, things are very often taken the wrong way. i suggest you tone down the contrast between the two sides, and maybe not use so much of each element, incorporate something else, maybe show an overall unison between the teams who share the same love for basketball and desire too win.

art can be looked at on so many levels, from so many different perspectives, and its the artists responsibility to be aware of this. i am not a racist in any sense of the definition, and if it appals you that thats one of the things i picked up on in my anasys, then i am very interested to hear other peoples views on this too.

i don;t belive that it is a racist form of expression, and if it saddens you that people can think like this, then your not alone, just maybe in need of a reality check!

ollie

[asterix]

If you don't think its racist - why bring it up?

Some of the worlds greatest art was created because it defied the philosophies and laws of their time - so I don't see the problem with conflicting perceptions.

The greatest struggle of any artist is to achieve a 'pure' communication of an idea.

BTW I thought the background was cheesy! (No offence)
I'd remove the solarised background and give it a warmer, evokative background. The flames make the red guy look like he's going downwards and not upwards to meet you.

I like the flames and wings though.

[MightyMouseLBC]

Thanx asterix. Can you give me a really specific idea on the backround because it bothers me to (what can I say my art is always a work in progress). I'm only 16 and a lot of you guys are experts on the subject. Ideas would be super.

[MightyMouseLBC]

You both make a great point. I should truly like my art for what "I" think of it. Art is going to be seen a thousand different ways, I can't control it all. It is senseless to whine and complaign about how someone else sees the picture. I just hope everyone can keep their oppinions as honest as you two do. It has truly enligtened me.

[elbows]

Theres a very relevant episode of South Park that looks at this issue, its the one where theres some flag and it happens to be a black perso being lynched, and loads of adults get horrified. They are worried about the children, but the kids dont understand the historical references so it doesnt mean the same thing to them. Lynching used to be a reality, now it is rather rare.

I dunno maybe we should see racism more as a continually evolving reactionary force that will change its face as society changes. So looking for things that could be deemed "racist symbols" in an age gone by and labelling them as dangerous racist stuff, probably does little to help humanity evolve.

The nature of inequality changes. The emotions and knowledge (or lack thereof) that cause racist attitudes, the "philosophy" of racists, all these things change.

Political correctness fits right into place in the puzzle of todays politics which is style over substance. It matters not whether there is grotesque inequality of pay etc, image management is the key. Pay lip service to equality by denouncing anyhing that could be deemed racist, whilst the reality of actual policy maintains a backwards status quo.

This is no attack on anyone in this forum, but a groan in the direction of modern political duckspeak and triplethink.

[disassembler]

Indeed art can be looked at in as many way's as there are people. But there is a VAST MAJORITY that will interpret this image as racist and religious. THe sooner you come to understand how people interpret images then you will become a stronger visualizer. You see its not "you" that people have to understand when they see your image. Your not going to be there when most of the viewer see your image to explain it. Effective communication doesn't need to be explained.

The wings are obviously angel wings. No real bird has wings like that.

Fire is from hell.

Games are a low level war.

The characters aren't grounded in reality.

So your piece says "War between white angel and black devil. Heaven and Hell "


WHy use REAL photos of people. WHy not just solid vector colors that identify human and not ethnicity. It would be far more powerful and enjoyed by everyone. Rather than just those that see it the way you do.

I would never compare this image to the art you see in a museum. Its graphic design and therefore used to communicate a message (not all art is about message). And if you want true feedback then don't respond to peoples critiques as "YOU DON"T UNDERSTAND". Cause critiques aren't ment to stroke your ego. They are a test to see if your successfully communicating.

[elbows]

Maybe if I follow my own logic of taking possible racist symbolism in the context of the current era, then there are real reasons why this graphic may appear racist in 2003.

eg The Axis Of Evil, the whole war on terror crusade, the symbolism, the language used by Bush, it has invoked a sense of a "good versus evil" campaign with religious heaven/hell overtones not seen in recent history.

Anyway personally I didnt think of any race issues when I saw the graphic, but once it was pointed out I did see the point I guess.

Sorry for going all off on a rant, I like talking about this stuff and I never know how to critique other peoples work properly, so Ive gone off on a tangent.

[KillingFrenzy]

Hehe,

You're also opening an entire can of worms by using religious imagery for a public school project.

I say this because my school mascot was the "blue devil" and there was some eventual discussion about whether having the crowd shouting "DEVIL POWER" was appropriate. Me and my friends found it quite entertaining to shout "Devil Power" and make hand signs like we were at a Danzig concert.

The flames don't pop much on that red background.

[Primebase3]

holy shit. I am glad I've readed on in the thread. I got so pissed off over that picture I was flaming away. please please GIVE EXPLANATION with the picture, I didn't get it and my first reaction was pure anger.

pure automatic: had I knew I wouldn't reacted like a madman.
may apologies for everyone who reads my original post.


that said , the design can be so much cooler (if you add the text of teams please :)) tip : www.alexrossart.com great style , maybe an idea for the wings and the background to give it a more dramatic feel.


that's all

[Lara]

The message behind any graphic is re-interpreted by the designer, and sometimes you have to be so careful because your social conditioning- how you live, where you live, gender- can so easily intrude on your design as has happened here. When designing you should always think about your audience and not just yourself. This is a great lesson to learn for you at this age Mighty Mouse, bloody hell took me years and years to figure that out! When you get inside the head of your audience and leave your own background behind then you can more effectively communicate with them. Btw, great suggestion Disassembler . . .

WHy use REAL photos of people. WHy not just solid vector colours that identify human and not ethnicity. It would be far more powerful and enjoyed by everyone. Rather than those that see it the way you do. :)

[asterix]

Guys - its a campaign poster not a Salvador dali.

When you design a poster - try and keep a few tips in mind.

KIS - no Im not hitting on you. Keep It Simple. You're half way there as you don't have a full spectrum of colours/features. It doesn't look too buisy (which is when your eye finds it hard to focus on the imagery/layout).
Try using a colour wheel to pick a colour range for the poster. Those two colours (warm brown and flourescent blue) clash like hell.

Try and use the background to draw the viewer into the idea you're trying to represent - without distracting them from the focal point.
Think of... I don't know light beams cutting through and eery darkness - a motion blurr or something. It would probably draw you to the area where the defender would meet the ball.