Design I Like: The Fashion Show

I particularly like the design on this poster and advertisement for the first season of The Fashion Show on Bravo. Of all the advertisements for series throughout the years that I see in the office on a daily basis, this has always been my favorite. I think it is aesthetically pleasing and, furthermore, it is relevant to the content of the program and therefore clever and interesting.

First of all, I think the design and layout of the poster is aesthetically pleasing because it is very well balanced. The layout employs the rule of thirds, with the two hosts prominently featured in the center and the contestants distributed on either side of them in the remaining two vertical thirds. Horizontally it is also divided into three, with the series logo and tagline in the upper third, the cast members in the middle third, and the show and network information in the bottom third.

All of the typography is easily legible. The font used in the logo is reminiscent of many high fashion magazines’ logos, such as Vogue, Elle and Harper’s Bazaar, which all use similar all capital letter typographies. Beneath the logo, the tagline is featured in a font that mimics handwriting, which is appropriate for a show that involves sketching for fashion design.

Moreover, along with this theme (and the reason why this poster is my favorite), is that the contestants are illustrated characters rather than photographs. Although theses sketches were based on original photographs, it was a deliberate decision to draw them in the poster instead because it conveys the fashion design theme of the show in the poster. The contestants are displayed much like fashion sketches that a designer would create before producing their garment. It gives the poster an artistic edge that is relevant to the concept and frequently seen throughout the series. It is also, in my opinion, more interesting to look at than photographs. Additionally, it makes the two hosts, Izaac Mizrahi and Kelly Rowland, really pop out in the image. They are in a position of power over the contestants and the image conveys that. If the contestants’ photographs were featured instead of the illustrated characters, the hosts would not be as prominent and would probably get lost in the crowd. Although I think these messages about the show are conveyed by the poster, I think they are still subtle enough that the poster remains simple, direct, easily legible and neat.