Eleventh International Conference on The Image

Abstract

One of advertising’s most effective tools for engaging readers and viewers is the unconventional image. Two print media examples: Absolut Vodka hired the late Andy Warhol to paint a Fine Arts portrait of its bottle for print ad Absolut Warhol. And Danish company Lego created a wordless communication with a photograph of two of its blue blocks casting a shadow–of a military tank! The result, especially in Absolut’s case, was a dramatic increase in product sales, followed by coveted industry awards. “How do they come up with these award-winning images anyway?” Today’s affordable technologies may have improved skills in editing, manipulating, even creating images; but they haven’t increased the ability to make the connections that lead to unconventional images. That’s the purview of the Mining for Gold workshop and Creative Aerobics, a twenty-first century ideation system that maximizes participants’ creativity by concentrating on process rather than end result. This four-step information-gathering process alternates left-brain and right-brain exercises, generating fresh, out-of-the-box answers in a relaxed, informal, fun and laughter-filled setting. In less than an hour, participants arrive at multiple solutions (images) they’d never have thought of, using their current problem-solving skill set. Participants enjoy the educational process because it feels like playing. Creative Aerobics has been used successfully by award-winning advertising professionals internationally, and by students in India and the United States, who have garnered more than 200 advertising awards.