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Witty Ads that Grab Your Eyes

Summary: Pictures of witty and effective advertisements.

Though we visit museums to purview high art and have our soul opened, let us also recognize the amount of creativity and ingenuity put into such mundane and pervasive forms of art as advertising. Though obviously fueled by the economic motive, advertising is a fascinating art form in that it addresses our desires directly. It has no deeper meaning; it asks not to be studied; it wants an immediate effect; it has to grab your attention immediately, so you will give it 5 seconds of your focus.

This is an entirely different enterprise from high art, which expects you to figure it out through intense contemplation. Nevertheless, a parallel amount of ingenuity goes into anticipating what will stop your wandering eye and focus it on a product or service. The name of the game is wit. Consider these advertisements and how the immediately make you ask questions, make you want to prod further and figure them out.

Perhaps high art uses the same tactics, but advertisements are more blatant. They pose a visual riddle: what does this interesting picture mean? We have to look further to figure it out. Like a joke setting up its punchline, we immediately see something incongruent and want to know its meaning. That makes for effective advertisement.

Daniel June: Daniel June studied English literature at Michigan State University, graduating in 2003. Working a potpourri of jobs since, from cake-decorator to proofreader, his passion has always been writing, resulting in books of essays, novels, and children’s novellas.