Calligram In-Depth Analysis Oscar Wilson

Context:

Oscar wilson created this image as a representation of the London Life, the majority of his work is very contempary as he's been illustrating and doing different types of typography since 1996 to now. His target audience are the people of London and tourists which is why his work is very promotional. He works for many different companies such as: Nike, Puma, Visit London, Supreme and NMG. Also he does many different types of advertisements which include posters and retail design.After looking at his various art pieces I have realised that his work is mainly hand drawn, using bold font sizes and different shades/colour. The way that he does this is very creative as he carefully uses different colours/shades to make each section of the picture clear for the tourists/Londoners. Another strong aspect of his work is the use of a bright background which catches peoples attention.I have chosen to analyse this piece because I will be using the same technique when creating my own calligram. 

Meaning:

To further my understanding of his work I looked at another website;  http://www.debutart.com/illustration/oscar-wilson/visit-london-gorilla#/illustration-portfolio. This website gives each of his calligrams shown, a variety of captions that relate to the picture. Each caption allows you to understand the different aspects of the image e.g: the colour, theme and type of picture. I would say this picture is an illustration. This is because the words relate to, and create the picture of the Gorilla. I believe that the theme of this is advertisement. This is because it looks as if it is a poster advertising different places to go/ things to do in London. For example: 'Boat Trip', 'Museum' and 'The Round House'. 

Aesthetic:
I think that he made this picture firstly by tracing/drawing the outline of a gorilla. The second step would be to place tracing paper ontop of his drawn image, and then write/draw the words (as well as the outline) fitting into the drawn shape. The third step would be to scan and then put the picture onto Adobe Photoshop and fill it in with colours. Oscar Wilson has cleverly and creatively used colour. I think this because he has used different shades of grey on the gorilla where the same shades would be on a real gorillas fur. He has then used a bright background colour which stands out from the other dull colours used. I also think that he used the bright green as the background colour for advertisement purposes; to catch the publics eye. 

Personal Response:
The reason why I have chosen to analyse this art piece in particular is because I find it interesting how he has used a gorilla to advertise London. Also I like the way he has used the bright green on the background to make it eye catching for the public; this shows that he thought deeply about the purpose of the art piece. This aspect of this piece has influenced me to think carefully about the colours I will use for my calligram of a wine glass. I will use different shades of red and purple to relate to the colour of red wine, and colours usually associated with red wine.

                                                                     

I found Oscar Wilson's work very interesting, particularly the way that he uses words to represent and relate to the picture that it forms from the words.

I really like the way he has used this image to advertise artistic aspects of London i.e: South Bank, Modern Tate. Also the use of colours and shaping of the letters (fonts) make sit very effective as it allows us to clearly visualize what the image is. 

This picture is my favourite piece done by Oscar. This is because the words used for example: 'professional standards', 'national voice' and 'leader ship' have an obvious link to the picture. I think this because professional people are usually the ones to use a voice amplifier, and this is clearly shown in the picture which allows everyone to relate to it, as that is the perception we have of the object.





After researching Oscar Wilson's work I decided to create my own calligram of a wine glass, using words that relate to the 'them' of win and wine glasses.