Semiotic Analysis of Ole Lynggaard Advertisement

This essay aims to provide a semiotic analysis of the advertisement of Ole Lynggaard Copenhagen Snakes. Derived from the Greek word for sign, being "seemeiootikee", semiotics is the study of signs represented through images, sounds, objects, body language and words (Lotfollahpou et al 2015, p.435). In providing the analysis I will firstly give a brief overview on the company. This is followed by surface layer review of the advertisements key messages. Then, the advertisement will be interpreted for underlying layer messages, highlighting some of the larger cultural readings that are evident in the complicated interaction of codes and rules which ordinarily lay unobserved. Finally, it will show the linkages between Ole Lynggaard Copehagen, snakes, and cultural codes.

Firstly, to understanding the messages of the Snakes advertisement, a brief overview of the Ole Lynggaard Copenhagen company is required. Ole Lynggaard Copenhagen is a Denmark luxury goldsmith established in 1963 (Yates, 2014). The brand is synonymous with elegance and quality, and has grown into an icon, becoming purveyor to the Danish royal court in 2008 (ibid). The company's interest are predominantly in producing quality collections that are inspired by the fauna and flora of nature. The Snakes collection was imagined upon a visit to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo by the company's namesake some 40 years earlier (Ole Lynggaard, 2015). The Snakes collection was released in celebration of the company's 50th anniversary (ibid).

Next, by taking a look at information at surface layer we gain an understanding of the immediate message the advertisement is conveying. Images, words, gestures, and textures, are all known as "signs", defined as "something that stands for something, to someone in some capacity" (Lotfollahpour et al 2015, p.436). Hence, upon initially viewing the Snakes advertisement it is apparent it is selling jewelry. However, through further interpretation of signs, a...