The other day a prospect asked me why a cartoon should be used instead of a photo for their marketing.
No better example to turn to than some recent current events with the election and who won and who did not. Just ask Johny boy who sat a-twiddlin’ his thumbs while Obama was a-deliverin’ his Stimulus package dealio the other night.
Here’s what I mean.
Last Sunday, I got snaked into CBS Sunday morning show. I didnt want to watch TV as I was stepping out – but was immediately pulled in because of the subject matter.
Shepard Fairey, the artist who did Obamas portrait, was featured. Now leave whether you voted for the man aside for a spell.
They showed the piece of art that became known as the Obama signature sign.
See this pict for reference.
It became the image of the campaign, Time Magazines ran it as a cover and hundreds of thousands of prints were created from it.
No it wasnt a photo, it was a graphic rendition of Obama taken from an Associated Press photo.
This portrait icon grew quickly as the identifying mark of Obama’s campaign. Posters were created from it, t-shirts, mugs and a bunch of other chach-ka.
Obama himself wrote a letter to Fairey on the piece… “Your work moves people. It uplifts them.”
This piece of art when compared to the photo in which Shepard worked from is like night and day. The associated press wants a piece of the action as they are in a big legal battle with Fairey over the rights to the image… or some crap like
that.
Hey AP have you ever heard of Andy Warhol and other Pop Art?
Duh!
So this brings me to my point… a photo is just that a photo. A work of art brings your essence alive like it did for the Obama campaign.
Did this make the difference in winning and losing. Maybe maybe not. Fairey would like to
think so.
Here’s what I do know.
There’s a line in Monsters Ball that goes, art can capture someone’s essence better
than a photo because … the lines that make up the art are ALIVE.
Interesting thought, eh.
Given that, there are times to use a photo over art. However, if you want to move from Under Dog to Top Dog, ART is the place to START.
To get a 15 minute phone conversation about how to position you in your business,
run over to…. our FREE Cartoon Consultation page.
Best,
Vince Palko
The Godfather of Cartoon Marketing
Author of The Art of Selling Using Cartoons