This document provides an overview of how imagery in commercial advertising has evolved over time and been shaped by different cultural contexts. It examines advertising approaches from the 1920s through the 2000s, noting how messaging aligned with dominant archetypes or human motivations of each era. Key shifts included a focus on leisure in the 1920s, family values in the 1950s, individualism in the 1970s, and a "collage culture" with no single dominant approach today. Overall, the document argues that advertising must now cater to fragmented audiences and global influences while navigating issues of personalization versus privacy.

1. Imagery in the Commercial
World
A short history of an ever-evolving,
exciting and controversial relationship
Konstantinos Kontinos
Presented in the event
The Athens Dialogues: Logos – Icon – Logo
Organized by The Onassis Foundation and
the Centre for Hellenic Studies, King’s College London
30 November 2013
Contact: kkontinos@yahoo.com

2. Making sense of messaging
in the commercial world is
easier said than done
We will need some type
of compass

3. Status
Sensorial satisfaction
Social recognition
Safety
Personal fulfilment
Belonging
Intimacy
Confidence
Personal progress
Commanding
respect
Access to
resources
Freedom
Independence Empowerement
Comfort
Sense of
balance
Curiosity
Amusement
Power
Sense of
Control
Identity affirmation
Love & affection
Thrill seeking
Arousal optimisation
Homeostasis
But first, the easy bit – human motivation has been unchanged since
the beginning of time – its is locked by evolution
It is the means that we have at our disposal that change over time.
And culture shapes them – and dictates what should take priority

4. Culture is reflected
in what we know
as ‘advertising’
but it is also
driven by it .

5. Every age has its own distinctive
cultural
center of gravity
Let us have a shot at
deciphering it

6. 6
Ruler
Creator
Innocent
Sage
Explorer
Hero
Magician
Outlaw
Regular
Guy
Jester
Lover
Caregiver
Order/Stability
Change/Mastery
Self-knowledge/
Independence
Group
belonging
Wholesome, pure
Forgiving, trusting, honest
Happy, optimistic, enjoy
simple pleasures
Searcher, seeker, adventurous,
restless, desire excitement
Independent, self-
directed, self-sufficient
Value freedom
Thinker, philosopher,
reflective
Expert, advisor, teacher
Confident, in-control, self-
contained, credible
Warrior, competitive, aggressive, winner
Principled, idealist, challenge “wrongs,”
improve the world
Proud, brave, courageous, sacrifice for
greater good
Rebellious, shocking, outrageous,
disruptive
Feared, powerful
Countercultural, revolutionary,
liberated Shaman, healer, spiritual, holistic, intuitive
Value magical moments and special rituals
Catalyst for change, charismatic
Not pretentious, straight
shooter, people-oriented
Reliable, dependable, practical,
down to earth
Value routines, predictability,
the status quo, tradition
Seek True Love, intimacy,
sensuality
Passionate, sexy, seductive,
erotic
Seek pleasure, to indulge,
follow emotions
Clown, trickster
Playful, take things lightly,
create a little fun/chaos
Impulsive, spontaneous, lives in
the moment
Altruistic, selfless
Nurturing, compassionate,
empathetic
Supportive, generous
Innovative, imaginative, artistic
Experimental, willing to take risks
Ambitious, desire to turn ideas into reality
Manager, organizer, take charge attitude
Efficient, productive
Confident, responsible, role model
Yearning for
Paradise
Leaving a
Thumbprint on
the World
No Man
is an
Island
Providing
Structure
in the
World
Adapted from‘ The Hero and the
Outlaw’ by Mark & Pearson

7. 7
1920’s
1930’s
Economic crash-
Depression
Women given right
to vote (USA)
First Transatlantic Flight
Dance Crazes
First sexual
revolution
First talking films
Alcohol
Prohibition starts
Film Industry on the
rise
The post-war world strives to
forget through fun and
excess. Meanwhile, it is totally
open to new things.
Jester Explorer
1920s to 1930s

8. 8
1920s to 1930s
1917 1923
The position of
women is a front
where change
happens fast.
The speed of
change in terms of
values, aesthetics
and therefore
messaging is
astounding

9. 9
1920s to 1930s
Amelia Earhart, 1929
Women start to be depicted in scenes of
interaction with the opposite sex, and, by
the end of the decade as role models.

10. 10
1920s to 1930s
Leisure and sensual pleasure are pervasive in the advertising of the era

11. 11
1920s to 1930s The experimenting mentality also favors
a quest for the exotic.
The stereotype of the era for the orient links it with unleashed
instincts and sensuality.
Some depiction of the ‘exotic’ nevertheless are shockingly
racist by today’s standards
Telephony ad, 1924

12. 12
1920s to 1930s
The automobile and technology in general
are depicted as a means for freedom and
pleasure.

13. 13
1940’s
Totalitarianism on
the rise
Economic crash-
Depression
Roosevelt’s
New Deal
Military Build Up
Dust Bowl
Start of WW II
Poverty, social unrest and
growing global frictions call for
a strong leadership
Ruler
1930s to 1940s
1930’s

14. 14
1930s to 1940s
Getting a job and being safe became top
priority.
As bad nutrition became a sign of poverty,
ads that promoted means to get a fuller figure
started to proliferate.

15. 15
1930s to 1940s
Means for cheap, affordable nutrition became increasingly important.

16. 16
1930s to 1940s
Propositions related to thrift and getting good value out of everything made their mark across
the board.

17. 17
1930s to 1940s
The need to be safe
from danger and
unpredictability took
center stage.
Law and order and a
protected life made
their appearance in
communication.

18. 1940’s
1950’s
World War II
ends
Picking up the Pieces-
Rebuilding of Europe
Start of Cold War
Arms Race
acceleration
McCarthy Witch hunt
Fighting the war and
starting life all over
again over demand
heroic efforts
Hero
1940s to 1950s
Global scale war

19. 19
1940s to 1950s
War paranoia gave birth to some of the most memorable
communication.

20. 20
1940s to 1950s
The position of women was elevated again after the 20’s. Instead of powerless housewives they
now became an important part of the war effort.

21. 21
1940s to 1950s
War iconography and
messaging became central to
the communication of
practically every brand.

22. 1950’s
1960’s
Advertising-
Consumerism boom
Rock & Roll
Teenage Culture
McCarthy Witch hunt
Economic build-up
Sputnik Launch –
start of space age
Korean War
Fear of the other side Family
values and moderation. Mr.
Average rules the game…
Regular Guy
1950s to 1960s

23. 23
1950s to 1960s After the war,
there was a notable economic
growth spurt.
Material possessions and
getting it made, middle-class
style became the obsession of
the masses.

24. 24
1950s to 1960s
No serious goals in life made their way into advertisements.
Depth was thrown out of the window.
Everything was about petty everyday material pleasures, elevated
to a ridiculously lofty status.

25. 25
1950s to 1960s
This throwback to family values-driven middle class convention was
devastating to the status of women – as if nothing was ever won in the
previous decades. The era produced some of the most blatantly sexist
ads ever recorded.

26. 26
1950s to 1960s
More of the
sexist rant
of
the era

27. 27
1950s to 1960s
Although, admittedly, amidst this conservative rampage there were signs of the change
that was about to come. Still, however the black family here has undergone the ironing
board treatment, depicted as a middle class white bunch.

28. Rebellion
Man on the Moon
JFK Shot
Second Sexual Revolution
British Invasion
Vietnam War- end
of Innocence
“I have a dream”
Pop Art
Psychedelia / Drug Culture
1970’s
1960’s
1960s to 1970s
Outlaw
The old systems calls for its
destruction. Nothing is taken
for granted. New spiritual
guidance is sought
Sage
Cuban crisis

29. 29
1960s to 1970s
Danish Ad, 1962
By the end of the 1950’s, there was a notable change in the air – driven primarily by rock
and roll and the emerging youth culture. However, conservatism temporarily rebounded and
persisted in the first 1/3rd of the 60’s. Here are some 50’s cultural leftovers, recorded in the
early 60’s.

30. 30
1960s to 1970s
By 1963-64 however, all this was pretty much over. There were clear signs of a more liberal
and less conservative outlook of life. The role of women gradually ceased to be depicted as
zombies/robots.

31. 31
1960s to 1970s

32. 32
1960s to 1970s Young people and idea of ‘the future’, both references
to change, took center stage.
For a time there was a feeling that everything will look
brighter.

33. 33
1960s to 1970s
Advertising mirrored both the pervasive cultural change of the era and (less often) the shock at
the face of it and the conservative backlash that tried to contained (but, by and large, failed for
many years).

34. 34
1960s to 1970s Naturally advertising appropriated the
aesthetics, the lingo and the value
references of the new era.
Even conventional brands jumped
the bandwagon.

35. Disco
Punk Rock
Second Sexual Revolution
Watergate
Androgyny
3 Mile Island
accident
Glam Rock
The revolution loses
steam. Only partying
attitude and promiscuity
survives the transition.
Lover
1970’s
1980’s
Oil Crisis
1970s to 1980s

36. 36
1970s to 1980s
Gradually, fewer people cared to
changed the world. What remained, was
the right to party and follow a leisurely
lifestyle

37. 37
1970s to 1980s
Collective goals subsided. How you look, how you behave and how cool you were,
Were seen as became increasingly important.
Pleasure-centered individualism became the norm.

38. 38
1970s to 1980s
In line with the spirit of pleasure-hunting and promiscuity,
in-your face, overt sexuality was used to sell practically anything –
in ways that we would find appalling today.

39. 39
1970s to 1980s
More of the kind

40. Thatcher-
Reaganomics
Yuppies & Power
apogee
End of Cold war
Fitness craze
New Dance Scene
Dallas & Dynasty Aesthetics
New Right-
Conservatism
End of Disco Era
Perestroika in USSR
1990’s
1980’s
1980s to 1990s
Material success comes back
with a vengeance. People
gradually become power-
hungry. Looks matter more.
Need strong reference points
Ruler

41. 41
1980s to 1990s
Pop aesthetics and a playful tonality
permeates the communication of
mainstream brands.

42. 42
1980s to 1990s
Over-the top flamboyance and success-
suggesting references are the choice of
more up-market brands.

43. 43
1980s to 1990s
Physical power and
performance took center
stage.
Mainstream macho
stereotypes stuck
around for a while.

44. 44
1980s to 1990s Getting it made esp. in a business context became
a cultural obsession. Marks of success were
celebrated in advertising.

45. World Wide Web- Internet
New Dance Scene
Globalization on the rise
Millennium
Angst
Breakup of East European
Countries
Reign of Global Terror
Mega Brands
First Gulf
War
People strive to create a meaningful
mode of living
in a chaotic world, by picking pieces
from seemingly
unrelated sources
Creator
1990’s
2000’s
1990s to 2000s
Grunge

46. 46
1990s to 2000s
Though styles per se became less
flamboyant, the aesthetic points of
reference became more absolute,
verging on the superhuman.
It was the era of the super models.

47. 47
1990s to 2000s
Meanwhile, mainstream brands began to challenge convention and come down with products
and communicational ideas that explored the limits of categories and expectancies.

48. 48
1990s to 2000s
1993
It was the car industry that displayed the first signs of ecological concerns in communication –
concerns that eventually would become mainstream.

49. 49
1990s to 2000s
Brands started to experiment more with
the limits of cultural acceptability. Non-
mainstream brands came into the
limelight.

50. 50
1990s to 2000s Meanwhile, and especially as the decade closed to an end,
big brands pioneered campaigns and initiatives that
attempted to redefine aesthetic and value codes.

51. What happened next?
Amita_The_Way_Forward_51

52. Well....
The thing is that the historian of the future will have
a quite hard task when asked to describe
the main direction of this era.
It is certainly easier to describe
'what happened’ in the 60’s, or 80’s’.
It is harder to distinguish a dominant Archetype.
This ‘problem’ is related to the fact that
today we live in the epitome of a
Collage Culture

53. 53
Gradually, we all had to learn to function through this
Many Distinct Communities
Highly Structured
Hierarchical
Limited Access
Global Community
Individual Flexibility
Decentralized
Unlimited Access
PAST PRESENT

54. There are no true big
movements any more
(political, social, artistic,
musical, etc.). Past
things are rehashed,
fused, re-vamped,
repackaged and re-sold.
There is lack of focus –
many, usually
contradicting things
happen at the same time.
Different things are
expected from us- we
have to act upon many
different roles – all
equally demanding.
Things happen so fast-
until one thing is rooted,
it is replaced by
something new. There is
no time to get really
deep into something.
The Superficial rules
supreme.

55. People have turned quite
blasé-
Its difficult to surprise anyone
these days.
They are easily bored and
eager to move on to
something else .
They also trust brands less
The ability to shock is
somehow lost. Extreme
elements of culture are
polished and co-opted by
the system in a jiffy.
Underground culture is
seen as yet another means
to sell, if you use it right –
and brands just do that with
unparallel ease.
The sources of change are
not the pretty much fixed
points in geography and
culture of the past.
Internet and Globalization
made sure that our
exposure to new things
can have the most
unexpected sources.

56. Last but not least, people are indeed more
ready to embrace change –
- but not necessarily because they consciously
and full-heartedly opt to…
People in today’s globalised societies,
are characterised by what has been described as the
Fear of Missing Out (FoMo)
– the anxiety that they run a continuous danger
to be left somehow behind, and if they do
they are in serious trouble..

57. Revisiting & repackaging the
past

58. Oddity, shock tactics & extreme irony

59. Globalised points of
reference
And new sensitivities that
brands have to cater to

60. No place considered off-limits for brand messaging

61. Attention deficit pushes for powerful
visuals and minimal text

62. Technology enablers creating new visual languages

63. The future?

64. • Commercial messaging will struggle to remain relevant against a fluid,
multi-fragmented audience.
• Messaging will be richer and more meaning –packed.
Cross-references to popular culture will be even more common –
but in many cases they will be cryptic as they will target very specific segments of
those who can ‘get it’.
• There will be a escalating tag of war between personalisation and thus
invasiveness, and the need for privacy.
No clear-cut winner will emerge any time soon.

65. •Advertising will look less than what we know as advertising.
Blatant, in-your-face selling will still stick around, but it with lower frequency - and effect.
• Its controversial role will not cease, but advertising will struggle to accommodate new
types of sensitivities and fluid idea of ‘correctness’
• Through increased transparency, practitioners of nasty tactics
will have a harder time coping
• Advertising will champion
change for the better more often and more successfully

66. Thank you!