Entry Four: "Arrow heaven"

For this journal entry, I thought of unconscious and conscious visuals. This then made me think of visual cues found in films. I immediately thought of the letter ‘X’ from the film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. The ‘X’ appears right before an evil-“ex” confronts Scott’s character. The ‘X’ is also found in the original Scarface film where an ‘X’ appears on or next to someone that is about to be murdered. By the end of the film, I felt like X’s were everywhere.

Going along with the article, “Setting sights on the Arrow” I was also seeing arrows everywhere. Even the way I wrote the word A-r-r-o-W. The pointed end, where it’s pointing, what’s its purpose, and how many ArroWs I see a day are questions that were left answered and unanswered. I understood what Patton was saying in the article about the literalness of the ArroW. “It radiates a sense of direction by its very shape, which is optimized for smooth passage, one way, through air and flesh.” The ArroW is the most direct symbol used in graphic design. Above all, the ArroW is the most universal symbol for all cultures.  

I first started to photograph my immediate area. On my bedroom wall, I saw my Hollywood sign with an ArroW pointing upward. Outside of my car, there is the Courtesy Chevrolet logo and inside my car is a buttons with ArroWs. When I get on the road, I see traffic signs that are more direct then for design. I went inside the stores, Bookmans and Michaels where I saw more ArroWs.

ArroWs that were used to tell time, used in logos, accentuated in packaged items, used to direct and to accentuate corners. I found vinyl records that had the word ‘STEREO’ with ArroWs pointing outward. A display of picture frame corners, a narrow house model that held magazines, a sewing machine that helped guide the thread through the machine; and a City of Flagstaff recycling symbol are all items that I fell upon. Overall I photographed ArroWs that were distinct and accentuated.