Camel

The image I chose was an ad in the July issue of Us Weekly for Camel cigarettes. It depicted a cigarette box resting on a harmonica, with the statements: "Mark the moments. Taste it all." sThe bottom left corner had, of course, the surgeon general's warning signifying that the product endorsed on the same page causes lung cancer, heart disease, and other medical ailments. I have always found this to be a sad and ironic chapter of advertising history - that the product being marketed as "cool" and full of "taste" is right next to an overt warning saying that it could kill you. It also bothered me that Camel cigarettes uses an animal to showcase their cigarettes. I sought to transform this image to make it into something truly "cool" - with the same camel on the cigarette box, in the desert walking towards a cool oasis in his natural environment. I wanted the image to be a hopeful message that we can help our environment and make it "healthier."

By Caroline Tobey

original image citation: no photographer/title given, Us Weekly Magazine, July 27 2014, last page.