Holly Ford-Hunt Graphic & Media Design Revolution: The design and anti-design discourse is something that is altered with the ever-changing world. The pandemic acted as a catalyst for the way society perceives and how designers design. The anti-design discourse is about exploring alternate approaches and creating discussion where organisations speak louder than ever before. Proposition: The governments ‘look them in the eyes’ campaign used design to communicate the importance of staying safe during Covid-19. By photographing patients, it was thought that more people would listen. These posters promoted Stuart Hall’s representation theory; by constructing ideologies viewers had perspective of negative positions hence the posters being a success in making people wear masks. Figure 1 (NHS Posters: UK government: ad has a shift in tone from its previous communications) (Magee, 2021) Despite the success of the posters, once the world got back to normal the Government rapidly chose anti-design but not in the sense we’re talking about. They released a poster dedicated to the idea of ‘Rethink. Reskill. Reboot.’ This poster was immediately plastered over social media. Figure 2 (Government Rethink. Reskill. Reboot. Campaign edit & Responses from public to campaign) (Cookson) (Birks, 2020) Design is everywhere. This poster would have been designed by someone who has a job in design, the image was photographed by a photographer, the layout was formed by a graphic designer, the list is endless. A simple campaign of which the Government thought would get great response was then scrapped. The communication was non-existent in the formation of this poster but communication in response was colossal and formed change. Identification: Social realism is about using art to highlight political and social issues. An artist whom reacts to this well is Banksy. The artist creates a form of anti-design in the form of graffiti work in order to say something in response to problems and to get people talking. It could be said that Banksy took to the topic of anti-design on a personal level; altering the way they worked during Covid. We weren’t allowed out so the artist showcased pages from a sketchbook instead of usual work. However, I had to search for this piece of his work so that questions whether a change in design is always right when what was done before was so successful… Figure 3 (Banksy – London Underground Undergoes Deep Clean) (telegraphtv, 2020) In July 2020, the artist took to London underground. This was a first piece on public transport which proves consideration of alternate techniques to create impressions. A video of this work ‘if you don’t mask you don’t get’ (figure 3) is a contribution to the desperate need to wear a face mask. The use of the final statement in the video ‘I get Lockdown, but I get up again’ with song changed the emotion to those viewing making it more light-hearted. The choice of substance to create the design being cleaning fluid was extremely impactful of time, one of things I remember most about Covid is cleaning constantly. This craft is particularly clever as it suggests this idea of nostalgia and moving past time. By using design, Banksy did more than just tell, they showed and dedicated themselves to this project. Promotion: The establishment of credibility for a business is one of the most important factors and should that decrease, a great drop in sales would result. It is said that ‘any publicity is good publicity’, during the pandemic Corona beer saw a decrease due to conspiracy stories linking between the virus and drink. Once this was being gossiped and then proven incorrect this news was being shown everywhere from television to socials; so although it was linked with a negativity, the brand was being viewed much more than usual. Figure 4 (Corona beer in plentiful supply, Marc Duffy) (Richardson, 2020) This anti-design form of advertising, from my perspective, had a great response. When people were allowed to gather again, people had Corona parties where the drink was at the centre of the table, this wouldn’t have been the ‘case’ (pun intended) pre-pandemic. As well as being humorous, the brands name was at the forefront of consumer’s minds whether they wanted the drink or talking about the virus, the term Corona was used by everyone. Solution: Communication is a topic I believe is taken for granted. Design is a form of expression and by expressing in different forms a different approach is created; we have to move alongside this ever-changing world and whether that is admired or disrupted remember, Art is subjective. Bibliography
Bakare, L. (2020) Government scraps ballet dancer reskilling ad criticised as 'crass', The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/oct/12/ballet-dancer-could-reskill-with-job-in-cyber-security-suggests-uk-government-ad (Accessed: January 12, 2023). Banksy sprays coronavirus-inspired artwork on to London tube (2020) YouTube. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YrQbM5lMHU (Accessed: January 13, 2023). Birks, G. (2020) “Rethink. Reskill. Reboot.” Available at: https://twitter.com/GregBirks/status/1315623955991080961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1315651327352090624%7Ctwgr%5E65d18693471bb5e6c6711961ed746cfc669093d0%7Ctwcon%5Es2_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thenational.scot%2Fnews%2F18791537.tory-chiefs-torn-apart-twitter-mocks-fatima-retraining-campaign%2F (Accessed: January 12, 2023). “Cases in England” (2023). Available at: https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/details/cases?areaType=nation&areaName=England (Accessed: January 12, 2023). Cookson, G. (no date) Fatima, Cyber, and the Graphic Designer: Loving Useless Art. Grant, K. (2020) Corona beer sales soared by 40% in 2020 despite Covid Association, inews.co.uk. Available at: https://inews.co.uk/news/consumer/corona-beer-sales-soared-2020-covid-association-supermarket-sales-latest-799853 (Accessed: January 13, 2023). Magee, K. (2021) Will the government’s new emotive covid AD make people obey the rules?, Campaign Live. Available at: https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/will-governments-new-emotive-covid-ad-people-obey-rules/1705634 (Accessed: January 12, 2023). Richardson, H. (2020) The foods no one wants in lockdown, from sprouts to Corona Beer, Daily Mail Online. Available at: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-8159689/The-foods-NO-ONE-wants-lockdown-sprouts-Corona-beer.html (Accessed: January 13, 2023).
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