Calendars a genre analysis

Art; Video Game

Setting: Calendars appear everywhere! Of course they predominantly come into play at the end and beginning of a calendar year (I even had to use the word calendar to define the time period I’m talking about…) Many stores will sell a variety of calendars during this time period and they are bought for gifting and personal use. With this considered, calendars could be classified as seasonal goods (ie: they are in stock during ‘holiday’ periods) though they are sold throughout the year but with less variety.

Art; Video Game

Subject: Calendars allow for users to keep track of larger quantities of time. What pictures decorate the calendar can range wildly from playful/childlike to incredibly adult/promiscuous. There are so many different types of calendars available (desk sized, 365 days, 12 month, 18 month, planners, wall mounted, life size, etc). Who buys what type of calendar? What image theme do they choose? Does the intended location of the calendar dictate the options available to the user?

Humor; Musical Artist

Provocative; Musical Artist

Humorous/Provocative; Entertainers

Participants: Again, almost everyone who is able uses this genre. Writers? Many calendars are created by independent groups for the purpose of benefitting themselves/their chosen organization. The calendars are created with the idea of selling them in mind. They must think about their audience, what they’d like to see, and what they’d consider spending money on. This will (usually) require a lot of effort, planning, and cooperation. Readers? People who use physical calendars will choose ones that they enjoy, recognize, or are fans of. Calendars are usually purchased for ones’ self but they are often gifted to others as well, thus they must be chosen with a person in mind.

Humorous/Provocative

Purposes: Writers? Calendars (like previous examples) are often made to promote and support the creators. Often (like some coming examples) they are made to be popular sellers. Readers? Fans of the franchise/artists depicted will likely be excited to own art/pictures provided in the calendar as they will be both useful and entertaining. Calendars are used to help people organize all aspects of their lives.

Photography; Location Calendars will often include: Holidays Grid indicating month, day of week and date Space to write in/take notes Images Depending on type of calendar; factoids, quotes, fun activities, sayings, etc.

Humorous/Cute/Provocative

Cute; Character Calendars are used universally to help people stay organized and keep in tuned with the time on a grand scale. They are designed in a way that reflects capitalist ideals; what consumers would be interested in buying. Themes for calendars are incredibly vast, making it a giant genre that can be further explored. Is the genre changing/being altered with the advancement of technology?

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WAIT, THERE’S MORE? A huge, HUGE part of the calendar market is made up of these pieces that portray women in lingerie (or nothing at all) that lie around to be the gazed upon. HOW COULD I HAVE LOOKED OVER THIS? (Thanks for the inspiration, Carly, lol) This is the same thing that occurred with some of the samples I’d previously displayed, so why didn’t I consider how calendars with women doing the same thing as men strike my fancy when I originally did this project? It’s a fascinating part of the genre to examine, and I will do so in this edit, adding onto my theory and analysis of calendars.

A change in keywords Searching Bing for ‘sexy calendars’ as opposed to ‘calendars’ like I did when I first made this project brought incredibly different results Primarily of women, and yet, as we’ve seen, there are plenty of examples where men are put in provocative stances to sell the calendars Why are provocative male calendars different from provocative female calendars? Sell to different clients Both exist, but men are often used humorously; as a foil for the seductiveness seen in provocative women calendars.

~Money~ Images Sell? Sex Sells! Revised Conclusion Calendars are used universally to help people stay organized and keep in tuned with the time on a grand scale. They are designed in a way that reflects capitalist ideals; what consumers would be interested in buying. This can include fandom pieces, art, photography, pornography, fantasy, reality, humor, etc. Anything that can be sold will most likely show up as an image in a calendar. Sex Sells! Images Sell?