Piece of the week #1

Following the presentation of this seal, I have conducted a four stage analysis. It goes in order of Describing, analyzing, interpreting, and judging

Part one: Describing.

At face value, this logo has Mount Rainier and the I90 Bridge appear to be the focus of the fixture. The Bridge sits atop Lake Washington, and is seen through a low-lying field of trees, with one tree above the mountain from the perspective of the viewer. There is no color besides white and red. There are some waves, and the picture appears to be relatively timeless, though it is very realistic. The time of day and season is not made clear in the picture.

Part two: Analyse

The work is very structured, organized by layers ascending from the foliage at the bottom to the tree branch at the top. Lines, even if small, are very strong and bolded. The image is 2D, since nothing bulges out at you. The picture emits a cool “vibe”, with coarse and spanning textures on everything from the bridge, the foliage, to the mountain. The middle-ground, and foreground are clearly partitioned, since the mountains are separated by a bold and smooth line flowing across the horizon. The variation of shapes and flowing of the lines is used to created an image nice to look at, however, nothing about the seal is particularly eye catching. This is predominantly due to the limited pallet of the logo. Having only red, white, and rough textures (which appear to have been generated by a computer), they combine together to form a logo that is balanced between Red and White. Though the bridge and mountain, largely maroon objects are profound, the white lake balances out the marooness of those two large object. Outside of the circle of the landscape, another circle encloses the words Mercer Island School District in another thing circle surrounding the circle. The words Mercer Island are in a bolded, seemingly strong text. The focal point of the image is the mountain, a large, maroon object right in the middle of the seal.

Part 3: Interpert

The artwork represents the waterfront of Mercer Island. Examining this conjures up images of sitting by a dock with greenery in the water, looking out to the I90 Bridge with Mount Rainier right behind it, with snow surrounding its crest. It’s a very calm feeling that places great emphasis on the mountain and I90 Bridge, which seems to place a lot of significance on the beauty of the Northwest. Considering the formality of what the logo is representing, it makes sense the image is so “neutral” in circumstance. It is a formal, but calm and clean day on a rocky, Pacific Northwest beach looking out onto Mount Rainier and one of the longest floating bridges in the world.

Part 4: Judge

The best part of the work is the mountain. Despite being 2D, the clever use of whites for snow creates a more dimensional look to it than one would expect. The contrast created, despite a lack of colors is impressive. Your eyes are guided around the picture, following the textures rather than having to dart around looking at tons of colors, scripts, etc. I learned that simplicity is a large factor in whether or not a symbol/seal is able to be timeless. With that being said, the script in the seal shows its age. The semi-bubbly font of Mercer Island is showing its age. In addition, the landscape isn’t particularly eye catching. Using a slightly wider pallet of colors or gradients may make the picture more interesting to look at, and less forgettable. Adding more contrast and tones to the image would help it be more interesting to the viewer, while maintaining a relative simplicity to ensure it remains as timeless as possible.