Art direction
The visual side of an advertising idea: choosing and shaping the images, layout, typography, casting, styling and look so that the work says the idea before anyone reads the words. In agencies the art director usually works in a pair with a copywriter, a model popularised by Doyle Dane Bernbach in the 1950s. Good art direction makes a brand recognisable across executions; showy art direction that ignores the brand's assets wins awards and loses attribution.
Where it's used
Used in campaign development, key visuals, photo and film shoots and design systems for campaigns. Good when the visual choices are tied to the idea and the brand's distinctive assets, not chosen for taste alone.
Example
Same line, two pictures
Illustrative scenarioA bike-share service has the line Faster than your commute. One option shows a smiling rider in a park, the stock image of every mobility brand. The art director instead shoots a single bike passing a long line of stopped cars, from above, in the brand's orange. People get the point in a second, and the orange makes it clear whose ad it is.
