'Adam and Eve', by Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1526

Project, "Classics on the Billboard"
By Grace Tsai

WASHINGTON APPLE IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN

"An apple a day keeps the doctor away," as said in the old saying. For centuries, apples are fruits that could cure and keep one healthy. However, in the modern context of health and apples, not much sex appeal is given to the apple. Thus, the goal of this billboard is to promote a sexy, healthy, and tempting appeal for the apple. The image chosen, ?Adam and Eve?, by Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1526, depicts the biblical story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. As in the story, God granted them with all the beauty, happiness, and food they needed, however, with the temptation of curiosity, Eve failed to obey God?s request of not eating the apple from the tree. Thus, to eat the apple, one is going against the abiding laws, creating or defining the apple to be worth the risk of offending God. These images can promote psychological affects, which trigger one?s brain to react to the apple 1) as a very delicious fruit which even the first man and woman were willing to risk everything for; 2) metaphorically as the beginning of birth or creation of mankind , thus subconsciously giving a sense of nutrition and birth to apples; 3) using the nakedness of Adam and Eve to try to promote a sexual atmosphere uniting to the apple.

Further, the image is manipulated in a series of copied image to create a sends of Einsteinium motion. The repetitive movement from both sides tries to draw attention to the center of the image where the Washington Apple logo is placed. Text was intentionally left out for one to focus on the center, the logo. Moreover, two different manipulations/renditions of the image is done, each place within several blocks from each other, allowing the audience to have repetitive recognition of the advertisement.

As for the location, the Washington Apple Billboard is purposely situated on the corner of Ohio and Santa Monica by the American Burger Restaurant. The large logo of the American Burger Store creates semiotic images of patriotism and freedom of America, by using colors such as red, white, and blue and symbols such as stars and strips. Thus, the burger or the beef is promoted to be the ultimate ?American? food. The apple billboard placed on top can register to the audience in association to the burger through one of the following semiotic readings. 1) A burger is a fattening food. Thus, by placing the apple on top, one might feel that it is healthy to eat an apple. 2) Adam and Eve was so tempted to eat the apple, what else can be more tasteful than the apple? Can the American burger compare? 3) The burger store as a food stand and the Bristol Farm Supermarket across the street might also trigger one?s subconscious to buy apple or become hungry for apples. The billboard is trying to promote Washington Apple as the delicious apples where even the first man and woman cannot resist. As tempting as in the story, the audience is drawn to the apple in a metaphor of temptation and sin or to any semiotic registrations the audience perceives. One can only try to create as much signals or signs to grasp the attention of the commoner that is passing by.



Billboard Scheme 1



Billboard Scheme 2



Billboard Scheme 3



Billboard image

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