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Design takes on politics
by Tamara Nyholt on 06/10/2012Many of us would have picked up the paper this morning and been greeted with yet another update regarding the upcoming American election (is it over yet?). From a design perspective I’ve been somewhat fascinated with how eagerly and wholeheartedly designers have supported the campaign of Barak Obama. Most of us are familiar with the bold (now iconic and much parodied) Shepard Fairey image used on the inital campaign:
Designers are still pounding the pavement (and drawing board) for the American left. Chicago designer Amanda Buck has jumped in with both feet and has been thoroughly enjoying the process:
“One of the best things about working for Obama for America is that I am on a team again, collaborating with talented designers and developers, working on incredible projects, all for a cause we strongly believe in.
It’s an amazing feeling to be able to make anything we can dream up, happen… and then be able to share it instantly with thousands of people around the world.”
One of the more innovative projects Amanda has been involved in is The Life Of Julia, an interactive web-based presentation utilising the fictional Julia’s life to compare how the future will look for an American individual under either Obama or Romney.
Visually engaging illustrations simply and effectively portray her quality of life under Obama’s policies versus the disadvantageous changes which would occur under Romney. A fine piece of propaganda.
Amanda has used her skills as a designer and illustrator to create a number of other striking images and infographics, reinforcing awareness of the important issues raised in the campaign:
Unlike Barak and Romney, David Shearer’s and John Key’s campaigns will not have the megabucks to afford such a healthy investment into communication graphics, but the persuasive power of well-executed work remains inarguable. Perhaps we should reflect upon our American counterpart’s example and work harder to use our power for good?
