The Power & Influence of Illustration
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This is, I believe, my fourth Illustration book review on this blog. With each book I read I realise how important Illustration is in our daily life, mainly due to the subject dominating most methods of visual communication throughout history. The subtitle of this book is in fact: “Achieving Impact and Lasting Significance through Visual Communication.”
“The book discusses how the contents of illustrative imagery can lampoon, shock, insult, threaten, subvert, ridicule, express discontentment and proclaim political or religious allegiance; stir up disagreeable reactions; worship and celebrate; be satirical and entertaining; be unashamedly persuasive and ‘hard selling’; be serious and present original knowledge; and be educative or documentary material with great authority and integrity”.
What a way to introduce a book, however I do feel that this sentence sums it up nicely. The author, Alan Male explains that Illustration “can and does” incite debate, that it’s a catalyst for change particularly when it comes to “societal attitudes” and that it is also at the forefront of trends culturally and commercially.
On the Illustration/Fine Art debate, Male defines illustration as a “contextualized visual communication commissioned for target audiences” that is reproduced in large quantities and distributed on various platforms and industries. I have several questions about this that I will analyse further in my paper, my main one being — if there’s no particular context, is it still an illustration? If it’s not reproduced, if only one illustration is printed and the original file is destroyed, is it still an Illustration?
Male makes reference to what he calls “the five obligations of illustration” These are: Knowledge, Persuasion, Identity, Fiction and Commentary. Furthermore, he refers to Dr.Susan Hagan’s thesis that proclaims that “Illustrators are collaborative problem solvers in three environments — Argument, Description and Narrative.” Male writes that Hagan omits ‘Persuasion and Identity’ because of the “prescriptive way in which illustrators are briefed and heavily directed”.
Several interesting quotes about illustration through history from the book:
“Illustration has been described as art at the service of the people, presumably because of the growth and popularity of certain contexts and themes.”
This is in reference to the popularity and accessibility of animated films and comics. I quite like this quote because illustration does bring the arts to people who would not normally have access to them.
“The best illustration doesn’t just visualize history; it shapes it.”
Male writes about how Illustration has had an influential effect on society and that it has helped devise new ways of multi-platform creative expression like children’s books, comics, films and performance, advertising, media, design etc.. He explains that Illustration has helped “preserve and conserve” cultural heritage through education, knowledge, documentaries etc… Male reminds us that we connect with illustration all the time, but we are not aware of it. He mentions logos, packaging, information and new media as an example.
All this reinforces the idea of the “power” and “influence” of illustration of course, and particularly when Male discusses how religions in history have used (and abused?) illustration throughout the years to instill fear and suppression.
“Aztecs produced illustrations that not only identified the gods but also instructed on social class and behaviours.”
The book gives us quite a detailed historical walk through on persuasion in Illustration throughout the ages. Male discusses several other instances of when Illustration has had a profound impact on culture and politics throughout history. Here he mentions the American cartoonist Thomas Nast who helped abolish slavery in America, who satirized politicians who were weakened as a result. Every presidential candidate that Nast supported was elected, including Abraham Lincoln, who actually credits Nast for his role. Male of course mentions the more recent Charlie Hebdo murders where journalists and cartoonists from the magazine were killed for an illustrated portrayal of Mohammed. Later on he refers to this story again when he talks about morals in illustration.
Male takes us through the Golden Age of illustration that happened at the start of the twentieth century. At that point illustrators were hired for advertising as illustration was then mainly commercial, with several practitioners. It’s interesting that he mentions that this was happening mainly in the US.
“…as the world of advertising grew, consumerism expanded and so the influence of illustration continued.”
Several other important moments include: Modernism and second world war — where illustration was the “dominant visual language of propagandist communication for all of the military propagandists, the Allies as well as the Axis powers.” A reference is made here to Norman Rockwell’s war illustrations that aimed to boost worker morale and inspire patriotism. He then moves on to Postmodernism — a reaction against modernism; experimentation and expression. From the 1970s onwards “illustrators began to express ideas and concepts like never before as metaphorical and conceptual illustration became the dominant visual language.”
Following this history lesson, Male talks to us about ‘The Language of Drawing’. Various topics are discussed here: Identity and Iconography, Semiotics, Symbolism and Association, Allegory, Metaphor and Paradigm, Irony, Wit, Sarcasm and Perversion, Rhetoric and Visual Bombast and finally Subject Matter. Although, of course, I’m interested in most of these subjects, I refrained from going into detail on all of them and focused instead of what can possibly answer my research question.
On the subject of Context in Subject Matter, Male tells us that in editorial, where the subject is of a certain importance, the imagery should not simply reveal a “connection” but also “substantially expound the message”. Male explains that when it comes to topics of politics and current affairs, most illustrators are required to produce an image that represents their own account of the news in question. The views and opinions of the illustrators need to come from knowledge that is up-to-date and opinionated.
On this subject, Male quotes his own book (That I have already reviewed in this blog) ‘Illustration: A Theoretical and Contextual Perspective’.
“The pursuit of knowledge and information is a prerequisite to eminent, professional illustration practice.”
The emphasis that the professional illustrator must not be a machine, but also an intelligent, inquisitive person/artist, is a recurrent topic in Male’s books, and the more I read on this the more I tend to agree.
In this next section, Male introduces ‘Context, Impact and Consequence’. In ‘Ethics, Censorship and Moral Responsibility’ once again a reference is made to the Charlie Hebdo murders, and several questions on the importance and cost of freedom of expression are put forward. “Does the illustrator have an ethical and moral responsibility, especially when delivering for a global audience?”
“Broadly speaking, illustration is judged by its impact and influence. However, to many it might seem that illustration itself is being impacted upon by the structures of a worldwide cultural sensitivity mindful of the need for religious and perhaps political toleration.”
In ‘Professional Practice and Moral Conviction’ Male writes that since the 90s, there has been quite a change in attitude towards subjects like environment, health, race and gender. Due to this increased awareness, it is no longer acceptable to “take the money and run”. Male accepts that there are times when illustrators are tempted to give in, when they have families, when the work dries up, or when they are just starting out and are looking for their first gigs. He reminds us though, that we need to be “principled.”
Another topic that I found compelling was that of the role of illustration in social media. Male quotes Katie Spencer from Sky news who suggested that “In 1977, social media would have ‘put a stop to the Sex Pistols’. He also quotes music writer David Hepworth who insists that “one of the reasons you can’t have rockstars nowadays is they’d spend most of their time apologising for stuff.”
“If there were any Johnny Rottens today, it’d be very difficult for them to get their message out — it would be very difficult for them to get their message out — it would be all diffused by social media: as soon as they made any outrageous, provocative statements, they would very quickly be called upon before the court of public opinion and forced to apologise. It’s a different world.”
This is very interesting because due to social media, we tend to obsess over what people think about our work, possibly because we get reactions instantly. Social media, Male says, will have an impact on the recognition and acclaim on whatever subject is broadcast, performed or published. He reminds illustrators that they need to be careful not to be “compromised” especially on LinkedIn and similar professional platforms.
“Reputation and status in the world of visual communication is no longer confined to pure professional practice; discussion and ‘having a voice’ is now considered important and relevant, and having the ‘right’ attitude and conviction carries weight regarding one’s prospects.”
In ‘Politics and Propaganda’ Male reminds us that editorial is visual commentary. He tells us that the main function of editorial illustration is not just to be affiliated with journalism, Male believes that editorial illustration is journalism. He tells us that the best illustration is thought provoking and that it can’t have any power and influence if it isn’t. The principal remit of good editorial illustration is “political, economic and social commentary” according to Male. It needs to challenge all kinds of opinions, pose questions and make provocative statements.
“It disregards aesthetics or notions of ‘good taste’ regarding the subject matter or visual language, with drawings rendered with passion, force, energy and bite.”
In ‘Contemporary and Future Practice’, Male once again emphasises that illustrators need to be educated, that they need to constantly critically reflect on their assumptions and beliefs, and to challenge and create new ways of defining what influences their worlds. Male believes that provocation should be a theme that is ever-present in good illustration “as acquiescence and pure servility only deliver the status quo.” Here he mentions the importance of provocation even in curricula, where students should be ‘disrupting’ processes and challenging conventional methods.
This last paragraph is crucial to me as a design lecturer. We often talk about the importance of research, critique, evaluation and are sometimes tempted to guide students purely towards portfolios that help them find work. We must not forget though that an emphasis on knowledge will aid them in whatever career or path they decide to choose. More importantly, it is more likely to help us mold good designers and good illustrators who can inspire a change in our culture.
