This item is something I pick up at least weekly to get it
out of the way of my vacuum. Instead of throwing it in the cat toy bin, I
looked at it and started to see it. I would describe it as a green wedge with
white polka dots, green ears and tail, and a white rectangle above the tail. It
has no eyes. My analysis indicates that the wedge is made from a smooth, shiny
cloth and stuffed with some sort of fiber. The ears are felt. The tail is a
mini-rope of green woven threads. The rectangle is paper. Kennedy says that “visual
literacy is the ability to construct meaning from images," which is the
interpretation phase. I struggled to find meaning in this toy mouse.
Our textbook says “form follows function”. At first glance,
you could say that the function of this piece is to get the cats to play with
it and the styling (green color and polka dots) is the artistry. However, this
item came in a package with a lot of toys being sold seasonally. I suspect the
true objective was to get the package sold, without much concern for getting a
repeat purchase later. Thus the form really is part of the function, as the
color and design are really meant to coordinate with the other toys in the
package to appear pleasing to humans and stimulate an impulse purchase.
Taking all of this into consideration, my interpretation of
this item is as follows: What might appear to be artistry is actually part of a
greater design calculated to stimulate consumerism.
