Subverting the Narrative

It won't come as news to most of us that Photoshop and the multitude of photo apps that alter images have led to unrealistic views of ourselves. Women and men alike face body image issues in an era when taking selfies at every possible moment has become the norm. The objectification of women in advertising is a serious problem that has been hotly debated for years. Showing flawless and anatomically impossible bodies is harmful on many levels, and unfortunately it has become even more ubiquitous.Many of us consider it a welcome sight when advertisers challenge this narrative. The Dove Real Beauty campaign was among these. Their efforts to show women as they are were widely praised, though some critics felt that ad campaigns for products like Axe and Slimfast should be altered or cancelled as well if Unilever (the owner of these brands) was genuinely concerned.Justin Dingwall is a commercial photographer from South Africa who is using his skills to make work that subverts the standard narrative of what beauty is. In his fine art series Albus, Dingwall tackles the stigma associated with albinism. Worldwide, it's estimated that 1 in 20,000 people are born with albinism; in South Africa, the estimate is 1 in 4000. Those who live with albinism in Africa are often discriminated against and subjected superstition and violence.In a series of over 40 portraits featuring Thando Hopa and Sanele Xaba, Dingwall uses lighting and styling to question traditional ideas of femininity and masculinity and accepted standards of beauty. He includes religious symbolism; butterflies to convey transformation and The Madonna to convey comfort, acceptance, provision, and compassion. His beautiful portraits set a new standard, while also challenging us to consider how we perceive beauty.What have you seen that subverts the stereotypical narrative of beauty?Sources:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/21/dove-real-beauty-campaign-turns-10_n_4575940.htmlhttp://www.designindaba.com/articles/creative-work/albus-photo-series-challenging-established-standards-beautyhttp://www.justindingwall.com/https://www.thebalance.com/advertising-women-and-objectification-38754

Trump-Pen-an-ce

I know the man's name is Pence, but I can't help seeing "Penance," and wondering what we've done wrong as a nation that was so bad to deserve this.As critics and comics alike discussed the pros and cons of the newly revealed logo before social media prompted them to revise it a day after its release and take away the charming monogram, it's wise to keep our minds on the essence of logo design—it stands for a brand. Along with the obvious sexual associations of the "T" penetrating the "P," it may also be prophetic in predicting what may be about to happen to our country.What can graphic designers do about the impending penance? Making signs and posters is one way we can use our skills as they did this past March when they protested outside of Trump Tower holding 40-inch-by-60-inch signs of bold, graphic letters that together spelled "Build Kindness Not Walls."They may also want to take some ideas from the "Black Lives Matter" movement and see how graphic designers have been helping to fight racial injustice. Using data from news reports, some are creating shareable data viz, while others are creating memes to help get the word out.As the GOP Convention launches into full swing today, it's fun to analyze branding in terms of its design qualities and symbolism—but it's even more important for us to look at our social responsibility and see where we can help to combat the impending penance looming in our nation's future.Sources:http://www.wired.com/2016/07/ins-outs-new-trump-pence-logo/http://www.fastcodesign.com/3057904/how-graphic-designers-are-protesting-trumphttp://www.fastcodesign.com/3061779/how-designers-can-help-the-black-lives-matter-movement

Take the Pledge

Some of you may recognize this three finger pledge from your Girl Scout days when you were asked to recite the Girl Scout Law:I will do my best to behonest and fair,friendly and helpful,considerate and caring,courageous and strong, andresponsible for what I say and do, and to respect myself and others,respect authority,use resources wisely,make the world a better place, andbe a sister to every Girl Scout.The three fingers stand for 1) honoring God, 2) helping others, and 3) obeying Scout Law. Graphic designer and author David Berman feels graphic designers should take a pledge of their own—one that focuses on the second principle,helping others. Berman recently released a new edition of his book, “Do Good Design.” Along with its release, he has asked graphic designers to take the pledge and:1. Be true to their profession2. Be true to themselves3. Use 10% of their professional time to create a better placeDuring a live interview at the recent “Voices That Matter” conference, Berman said his mission is to first talk to designers about how much influence the work they do has on our world. He uses the environmental crisis as an example and its connection to over-consumption, speaking about the role that advertising and graphic design have in promoting a consumer culture. Berman believes once graphic designers realize how much power they have in influencing people, they will understand how they can use some of this power to make the world a better place. In doing the math, Berman feels there’s a potential for 8 million hours of time from designers that can be devoted to doing good. He has already has received over 112,540 hours in pledges.Berman’s position is one that is that has been debated widely. What is the role of a graphic designer and what is good design? Is it to simply create beautiful and effective things, or is it, as Berman and many others feel, to do good with? What do you think, are you willing to take the pledge?Sources:http://www.davidberman.com/social/dogood/http://www.girlscouts.org/program/basics/promise_law/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scout_sign_and_salutehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtnazQE7RPA

Turning Trash into Treasure

“Waste Land" was a project created by the artist Vik Muniz where he enlisted the help of workers from the world's largest garbage dump, Jardim Gramacho, located on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to create art out of garbage. Muniz raised over $250,000 when he brought the portraits that were created to an auction house in London. Mr. Muniz donated his $50,000 take for the sale of one man's portrait to the workers’ cooperative. An award-winning documentary with the same name was released in 2009 and some of the project's participants visited the Museu de Arte Moderna in Rio to see themselves in Mr. Muniz’s 2009 retrospective. “Sometimes we see ourselves as so small,” one tells reporters at the opening, “but people out there see us as so big, so beautiful.”In Cateura, Paraguay, Favio Chavez, an ecological technician at the landfill the town is built on, creates instruments for a young people's orchestra from trash. The “Recycled Orchestra” quickly gained more students than instruments. The students are beginning to take tours around the world and filmmakers are working on a new documentary, "Landfill Harmonic," to tell their  story.Another recent project intent on raising awareness about litter was created from 1.7 tons of garbage found on Mount Everest. 15 Nepali artists spent a month creating more than 75 sculptures from empty oxygen bottles, torn tents, ropes, boots, and every kind of camping equipment imaginable. Yaks, wind chimes, prayer wheels, and all kinds of unique sculptures were created. The works were exhibited in Kathmandu.The mission of Emergent Structures, located in Savannah, GA, is to increase the value and accessibility of building material waste streams through facilitation, collaboration, education, and advocacy. Some of their projects have included a collaborative fundraiser with the Humane Society of Savannah that began with a call for submissions for custom built cat or dog structures made from reclaimed materials and the "This Ain't Junk" repurposing competition with Savannah’s Habitat for Humanity. Emergent Structures wants to publish stories from all over the world about reclaiming materials and encourage people to submit their projects to Exclaim Your Reclaim.San Francisco's Recology Artist Program in Residence provides Bay Area artists with access to discarded materials, a stipend, and a large studio space at the Recology Solid Waste Transfer and Recycling Center.Closer to home, one of my students, Rick Diguez, was recently inspired to create a book made out of discarded stainless steel, left over scrap from a gutter installation. The result was a finely crafted book that pays homage to some of his favorite artists.Also local for me, the Newburgh Mural Project is a series of inspiring outdoor paintings featuring the work of Chilean artist Dasic. This project has transformed old buildings and tunnels into works of art bringing beauty into neighborhoods struggling with poverty and crime.What have you seen lately that inspires you to turn trash into treasure?Sources:http://www.emergentstructures.org/http://www.good.is/posts/landfill-harmonic-making-music-from-trash-in-a-paraguay-slumhttp://www.recologysf.com/AIR/http://www.sierraclubgreenhome.com/uncategorized/one-mans-trash-is-another-mans-art/?pid=1836http://www.theatlanticcities.com/arts-and-lifestyle/2012/11/turning-mount-everest-trash-treasure/4008/#http://www.wastelandmovie.com/synopsis.htmhttp://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/10/20/arts/design/1248069211361/clip-waste-land.html

Is Kony 2012 tony, or phony?

Kony 2012—the slick and emotional video by Invisible Children that has been circling the internet through Facebook posts, reblogs, and other forms of viral marketing—has been under attack this week. Critics are claiming that is irresponsible, self-serving, and a ploy for mass merchandising.With a campaign that asks supporters to "get the kit," some feel that Kony 2012 has become more than a campaign for justice—it's also become a source of revenue for its founders. Posters, bracelets, hoodies, and t-shirts are also for sale there and other places online. Questions about how much money is going to Jason Russell (its co-founder and filmmaker) vs. how much is actually going to the children have been raised. In response to this criticism Invisible Children has posted a response which includes a breakdown of expenses along with their financials.College student Grant Oyston never expected he would get over 2.3 unique views when he wrote the blog post Visible Children: Criticizing Kony 2012. Oyston says he wrote about the issue because he felt that people were jumping on the bandwagon to follow this campaign without doing research into either the organization Invisible Children or the war in Uganda. He said that up until his blog post came up he could find very little written about these issues.The poet Suli Breaks thinks the backlash against the Kony campaign is more a matter of cynicism. In a short response on YouTube he asserts that if the civil rights movement was going on now his generation wouldn't buy it. Suli goes on to say people have jumped from the Kony campaign to the anti-Kony campaign—without researching either stance.Many people, including Op-Ed NY Times columnist Nicholas Kristoff, have come out in favor of the campaign, saying that over the years he has seen that public attention can create an environment in which solutions are more likely. The top education official in Gulu, Uganda, Vincent Ochieng Ocen confirms this view as he explains the complexities of the war that has been waged for 20 years and affects not only Uganda, but other areas of Africa.Oysten and others, including Chris Blattman, a sociologist at Yale University, would argue differently. Blattman says, “There’s also something inherently misleading, naive, maybe even dangerous, about the idea of rescuing children or saving of Africa. […] It hints uncomfortably of the White Man’s Burden. Worse, sometimes it does more than hint. The savior attitude is pervasive in advocacy, and it inevitably shapes programming. Usually misconceived programming.”Another concern voiced by critics is that the campaign capitalizes on people's short attention spans; people will think they have done enough simply by posting one link or wearing a bracelet.When I discussed the campaign with my graphic design students most of them had heard about it, seen the video, and knew of the controversy that it had stirred up. There was a general consensus that they should support the cause, but not the campaign. They also agreed it was an excellent example of branding—acknowledging the slick and well executed video had powerful emotional appeal. This led to a discussion that included brand stretching, greenwashing, and social responsibility. At the very least, the campaign is a catalyst for the discussion of many of the ethical issues involved in graphic design.Sources:http://africasacountry.com/2012/03/07/phony-2012-risible-children/http://www.kony2012.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dtYhk0K_WcEhttps://vimeo.com/38609658http://www.invisiblechildren.com/critiques.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/15/opinion/kristof-viral-video-vicious-warlord.html?scp=1&sq=kony%202012&st=csehttp://visiblechildren.tumblr.com/post/18890947431/we-got-troublehttp://www.usatodayeducate.com/staging/index.php/ccp/college-students-blog-post-opposing-kony-2012-campaign-goes-viral

’Tis the Season for Giving Back

Graphic design with social responsibility goes on all year round, but the holiday season shines an even brighter light on how graphic designers are giving back. Following are just a few examples:Watch this CNN Report about a project done by students for Stefan Sagmeister's "Touch Someone's Heart" at the School of Visual Arts in New York City to create a virtual community for NYC's M15 bus line commuters.The Byne Group is a small design agency in Suffern, NY that decided this holiday season they would donate a dairy cow to a family in Africa on behalf of their clients and friends. Watch their holiday greeting.Please share any projects you've seen that are giving back here.Sources:http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-710199?et_mid=529211&rid=102291436http://imprint.printmag.com/daily-heller/happiness-is-a-warm-cushion/http://thebynegroup.com/cows

The company we keep

"The company we keep" is a heading often used by graphic design firms when they display their client list. Under this warm and fuzzy title they list clients that they are proud to do business with—and in the process build their credibility and status through association. But what about the other side of our business, vendors—printers, programmers, and other service providers—are we as quick to post that list? Unfortunately for many of us these decision are often driven by cost, convenience, and ignorance; we simply don't have the time, or take the time to find out more about our vendors.David Airey is one graphic designer who is walking the walk. He has decided to boycott GoDaddy because of CEO Bob Parson's big game hunting escapades and inhumane treatment of elephants—and then bragging about it by posting a video of the slaughter.Read Airey's blog post about it here: David Airey: Boycotting GoDaddy. Then find out more about the company that you keep. Is it an association that you want to brag about? 

Encouraging Social Responsibility

Design Ignites Change supports designers and architects who are addressing pressing social issues. Participants are encouraged to apply design thinking to problems that exist in their own communities. Two mentoring initiatives, Create! Don’t Hate and School: by Design are designed to create an opportunity for professional designers and college students to collaborate with underserved high school students to execute projects around compelling social themes.This year's award winners include organizations tackling immigration reform, childhood obesity, obstacles facing those afflicted with autism, and empowering the homeless. Read about the winners and their projects here: Design Ignites Change 2010 Cycle 2 Award WinnersSource: http://designigniteschange.org/pages/2-about

Students and pro bono work

"The Role of Graphic Design in Social Awareness," "Issues in Design," and "Can Design Touch Someone's Heart?" are all graphic design courses with the common theme of creating pro bono work (volunteer work done “for the public good”) to teach social responsibility. As AIGA Philadelphia and others are taking a pledge to support paid internships, where does pro bono work done by students fit in? Nonprofit organizations clearly have a need. Organizations like DesigNYC partner designers with nonprofit groups in New York City to create pro bono work on a local level to benefit the city. The Ad Council has been working with volunteers from the advertising and communications industries since 1942 to create public service campaigns to effect positive change in the lives of Americans. Other organizations like Design Global Change have a similar mission, sending students to India and Africa to create design that will effect change and create a better world.Students gain valuable experience designing brand identities, packaging, poster design, and more by working pro bono for nonprofit organizations. They can also fill out their portfolio with "real" work. Is this any different than student internships that are unpaid? If so, why?

Teaching Social Responsibility: "Water for India"

In January 2009, Hartford Art School Professor Natacha Poggio and a team of six art and design students traveled to Abheypur, India to implement the “Water for India” sanitation campaign as partners to the work of the “Engineers Without Borders” Student Chapter at the University of Hartford.“Water for India” aims to convey the importance of cleanliness, sharing, and respect for water resources through a painted mural at the girls’ primary school, coloring books with sanitation tips, and t-shirts featuring the logo.What began as an assignment in the Spring of 2008 for a class called “Issues in Design” grew into an ongoing effort after receiving feedback from Abheypur’s villagers. Since the start of the project, the students worked collaboratively on this wide-reaching project with other disciplines, team members and cultures and in 2009 the "Water for India" campaign placed third in the AIGA (Re)design Awards.The students and Professor Poggio have continued using design as a way to educate and empower people. The social consciousness and awareness of those involved grew through the process of research and learning to design for a more universal audience. The mission was extended in the next session of “Issues in Design” where the students worked on a new wellness campaign designing “kangas” (traditional cotton garments that Sub-Saharan women wear) for local communities in the Lake Victoria region of Kenya.Professor Poggio continues to teach “Issues in Design” along with a special topics class called “Design Global Change” (DGC) which evolved into an organization which focuses on global design projects.Where else do you think opportunities exist to use design to teach social responsibility?