A Preview into The Advertising and Arts World as Depicted in Merchants of Cool and Beautiful Losers

Art and Advertising

After a close analyzation of the world of art and advertising, I have come to the conclusion that these worlds are not all that different. The documentary Merchants of Cool goes in depth about the field of advertising and really gives you a new perspective of the life of being an advertiser and a consumer. It makes you question the true goal of advertisers. It exposes the level of consumerism and deception that is found in advertising in the past and today. The way marketers advertise to the youth population is wrong. They do not see teenagers as individuals, but rather as just a mindless consumer with cash to spend. Today’s generation of teens are taught to look to the media decide what is cool and what is not.

The documentary film Beautiful Losers gives insight into the misunderstood world of a group of artists who started an art movement back in the 1990’s. The artists do not try to stay within the realm of contemporary art. They draw their inspiration from their surroundings like their music, skateboarding and graffiti. Both the world of art and advertising have to get into the mind of the people who see their work and try to produce an art piece or product that people want to have in order to become successful. But while the world of art is more laid back in their approach and most artists have no set interest in exactly how they want their work to be portrayed by consumers, advertisers try to create advertisement to make the consumers all think the same way. Overall, the two worlds have a lot of similarities. Advertisers and artists want to be seen. They want to be appreciated. The only thing that sets the two apart is the intensity of consumer appreciation they are trying to receive.

The advertisers use a more calculated and thought-out plan of action in approaching the consumers. When potential consumers see their product advertisement, they attempt to enforce a desire for their product. They have no interest in how their product will actually benefit or harm a consumer’s life. They simply want to make sales rather than catering to what consumers are looking for. The artists, on the other hand, spread their own advertisement (their artwork) in a less direct format. Their work is inserted into the everyday lives of the individual. The art has relevance to people’s lives because it reflects the music they listen to and the things they do so it becomes relatable. Instead of having an advertiser approach you to preach their propaganda, artist’s work can be seen on the walls of graffiti in the individual’s city. It makes the artwork feel more personal. Art and advertising fundamentally have the same intent-make the consumer feel something about their advertisement/artwork but the reasoning to cause these feelings go in two totally different directions.