Fashion Design Drawing

By skillful placing of the units on the page the artist can guide attention from one unit to the other in any desired rotation and so develop the story to achieve the strongest effect. Some one unit, of course, should dominate the advertisement, but it also should amplify the message and cooperate with the whole.

For newspapers a layout should be extremely simple and direct in character, with a color and space breakup which will produce a well-styled pattern of black and white. The better quality of paper and printing in magazines permits of much finer black

and white effects than in newspapers, and the use of colors in magazine advertising permits still more interesting effects. When less than a full page of either magazine or newspaper space is used, surrounding competition frequently necessitates the use of borders. Double page advertisements are broken in the middle by the "gutter", the white space between pages, except when in the centre of the magazine.

MESSAGE, the next objective, is the subject matter of the advertisement and may be disclosed in the headline or in the general form and main illustration. It may be conveyed by either direct appeal or indirect appeal, a matter which is determined in advance by the advertiser or agency.

The usual method is that of direct appeal,- of clearly displaying the product so that the reader knows at a glance what it is. ».-

In indirect appeal the reader's interest is developed in an independent subject and gradually led up to the article advertised.

An example of an idea treated in the two ways is that of an electric sewing machine. The direct appeal would require a picture of the machine in the advertisement, obviously calling attention to its merits. The indirect appeal would show a woman attending a tea-party or bridge, her gown the object of obvious admiration, which is explained in the text as the result of her having made the duplicate of an expensive gown on her new sewing machine. Either no illustration of the machine" would appear, or it would be subordinated in the general design.

Either method must be handled with force and clearness. The message must be thoughtfully developed from headline through text and illustration, so that the finished work suggests harmony and power.

In fashion advertising, descriptive copy must also appear with the illustrations. These descriptions must contain the unusual qualities of the garment or item pictured; must designate color and size range (if that is important in the selling of the garment); must state the price. The floor on which the customer can find a particular article illustrated should, in the case of a department store, be designated.

A separate book could be written about kinds of type to be used in the copy matter, but fortunately some good books have already been written. In addition to suggesting that one or more of these be studied carefully, the author would like to emphasize the following points:

The selection and arrangement of type for headlines and text are art problems to be decided in connection with the general design. It must be remembered, however, that both headline and text must be easily readable. Ornament hinders. Likewise, too many kinds of type in the same advertisement clutters up the design.

A knowledge of lettering is desirable, if not essential. Some layouts require hand-lettered headings because the design or the space allotted may make the use of type impractical, but the use of type is advised wherever possible. Again, the artist must usually sketch in the headings required. The layout artist soon appreciates the value of a knowledge of type when he has to estimate how many words will fill a certain space. By accurate allowance for text matter, he can avoid the cost of resetting and insure the preservation of his layout form. The proper knowledge of type and an artistic sense in its selection and arrangement will give a layout the character of the finished work of the typographer.

IDENTITY or SIGNATURE is the final point to embody in an advertisement. The importance of conveying the name of the .