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How do Graphic Designers trigger a reaction through visual interpretation of a belief ?
“Design must seduce, shape, and perhaps more importantly, evoke an emotional response.” - April Greiman. Designers seek to communicate and create a response which frequently (but not always) relates to their passion and beliefs. For the past Century and a half in Graphic Design there has been opinion and need to communicate and visualise these opinions whether they are seen as wrong or right. This is certainly obvious in the work of Adbusters and the case study identified within this essay. The essay examines the ‘spoof adverts’ that they create and the fact that they spread information for the purpose of injuring an institution. The design work they produce is extremely relevant to there beliefs on capitalism and therefore they propagate against this through design. Adbusters are a non profit organisation based in Vancouver, Canada. They claim to be ‘ a global network of artists, activists, writers, pranksters, students, educators and entrepreneurs who want to advance the new social activist movement of the information age.’
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The term propaganda first appeared in 1622 when Pope Gregory XV established the Sacred Congregation for Propagating the Faith (Congregatio de Propaganda Fide). This is the department charged with the spreading of Catholicism in non Catholic countries. The extent of its authority have caused the prefect of Propaganda to be known as the ‘red pope’. Propaganda is to provide information in attempt to assist or damage the cause of a government or movement. People with ideas will always want to persuade others to evoke a response and make a concept more established. This is why the theme links in effortlessly with Graphic Design as they directly associate with one another through the communication of ideas. Propaganda can have a variety of themes but they all lead to the persuasion of an idea which is underlined as a key characteristic.
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Much of early propaganda relates to religion which makes sense as the word itself has religious connotations. Religious propaganda pays attention to attempting to change peoples believes. Much Christian propaganda attempts to make a bad name of atheists and creates a bad image for anyone who doesn't believe in Christianity. This is highlighted in Figure 1 as the man labelled ‘Godless’ is Fig 1. Godless Atheists Menace Western, Christian Civilisation : Godless Atheists & Godless ! Sodomites Imperil Everyone. National Archives.
portrayed as a monstrous figure destroying the world and Christians. The use of colour behind the figure further highlights this notion as the red highlights anger. This is a good example of black propaganda where there is no truth behind the piece.
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Propaganda was also used as a powerful weapon throughout the war and is where it really first became more well known within Graphic Design. The general use for propaganda in this time period was to persuade the public to join the army and also to attempt to convince the public they were fighting for a good reason. The most iconic piece of propaganda at this time was Figure 2 and was iconic due to the powerful message it evoked to the American public. The theme behind it is intimidation as people feel like
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Fig 2.Uncle Sam. James Montgomery Flagg. 1917
they have to go to war otherwise their country will be disappointed. This interacts with the publics emotions much like Figure 3 as they are stating that all the women want the men to go so that they are protected. It was very easy for the designers of this time as the were bystanders and could create these pieces to evoke emotion but not participate. Propaganda that taps on the viewers emotions can often be more powerful as it is easier to persuade a view if there is emotion behind it.
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In the present day propaganda is more commonly used within the corporate world. This is the type of propaganda analysed later on in this essay considering how it effects the social and cultural aspects of a company. A lot of corporate propaganda is used in attempt to injure an institution through Fig 3.Women of Britain Say "Go!"! Kealey, E J. 1915
highlighting their flaws which may be considered unforgivable by the public. There are two differing examples of corporate propaganda. The
first is a company attempting to put down a rival company through subversion in order to gain there customers. This is like Figure 4 as the advert tries to persuade that Pepsi is better than Coca Cola although not directly stating this by leaving out the logo. This is a clever but manipulative way of propagating and can cause
Fig 4. Joy of Pepsi. Pepsi. 21st. Century
ill feeling in the industry. The other example is a designer or organisation attempting to diminish a company or movement. This is similar to Figure 5 as Adbusters are playing on the famous ‘Hope’ poster featuring Barrack Obama and are questioning whether their is hope with the current British prime minister. This is a poster with the aim to condemn the government and current party, this may help evoke a response from the public as their is always varied views on the subject. To propagate against the corporate world can be risky but plays on the Fig 5.Hope?. Adbusters. 2008
thoughts of many people which means people may support the work.
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Propaganda and persuasion are very similar to one another but are different in the sense that propaganda is solely the spreading of information (true or false) in attempt to change minds. This was powerful through the war but in the modern day propaganda has developed into persuasion and the creative visualisation of subversion in order to persuade a viewer to respond to beliefs.
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‘Resistance to the power of corporations or multinationals now comes in both traditional forms of protest and in new forms such as subvertising…All wield the devastating weapons of humour and satire, expert tools for undermining or disarming power in its many forms and guises.’ - Graphic Agitation 2 - Liz McQuiston
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When people propagate in graphics it is an opinion or belief they are trying to bring across through visuals. This means it doesn't have to be completely the truth or even the truth at all. There are three different
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degrees of this ranging from white to black based on the truth behind the theme in which is being propagated.
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White propaganda states its origin and their is truth to it. It is persuasive but not as harshly obvious as the likes of black propaganda. The information given is truthful and yet still persuades people to react. Figure 6 shows a woman and is stating that women ‘can do it’. It is white propaganda as it is truthful yet persuades women to have more confidence. The propaganda is not put in place in any attempt to injure but is an opinion that has been visually communicated with a voice. This is also apparent in Figure 7 as the reason behind it is to simply recruit and inform the public that there is always room in
Fig 6. "We Can Do It!�. J. Howard Miller. 1943
Fig 7. There's room for you. W. A. Fry. 1915
the army. White propaganda was popular during the war to persuade people to join but isn't as common in the present day. The reason for this is that most of the propaganda in the modern world is corporate and therefore twists the truth.
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Grey propaganda is where the information may come across legitimate and have some truth behind it but the information is rarely sourced properly. It often persuades because people understand the information given and believe it could be true. Figure 8 is a poster created in more recent times in response to privacy in technology. The worrying truth in the modern age is that we don't know who is getting our information and where it is going. This poster has truth to it and states we need to be careful and the information seems relevant and helpful but not sourced. Figure 9 has some sense as if soldiers are fed well they will fight better and may win the war but the poster has not been sourced as it is unidentified who has realised the information. The main thing to realise about grey propaganda is the fact that the information is uncertain and can never be fully sourced and therefore cannot be trusted.
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Black propaganda is the final type of propaganda and is very deceptive
Fig 8. Be brief! Aaron Wood. 21st Century
as it's purpose is subversion and at times can seem as if it is from a
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Fig 9. We Are Saving You You Save Food. Henderson, E 1918.
friendly source when in fact it is from an opposing government or organisation. The best black propaganda were ones that seemed as if they were sourced. This is apparent in Figure 10 showing stamps from the mission taken place in WWII ‘Operation Cornflakes’. The idea of the operation was to airdrop hundreds of propaganda letters in Germany. They had fake stamps attached to them and false information. This is a
Fig 10. Operation Cornflakes (stamps). ! 1945
great example of black propaganda as the letters themselves looked like they were legitimate in Germany and inside the information was relevant. But the letters were disposed by the ‘enemy’ and put in place as one of many psychological operations carried out within this time period. There isn't a great difference between grey and black propaganda although black propaganda has a clear characteristic of subversion.
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‘ The newspeak of war propaganda, subversion through the underground press, caricatures in the daily newspaper, graffiti sprayed on walls and pavements, or badges and t-shirts shouting slogans within a crowd: all represent the graphic ‘voice’ of propaganda, protest and agitation.’ - Liz McQuiston
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As the history of propaganda states, the topic itself has gradually turned into persuasive design and uses the tactic of subversion rather than the pure outlet it was originally. Certain Designers and organisations present this in there work now as the world has developed so has the uses of propaganda. This is noticeable in the work of Adbusters and other organisations such as Amnesty International, Green peace and more.
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Propaganda is very common in Graphic Design and an opinionated topic which is why questions are raised about the ethics of some of the beliefs visually expressed. This certainly comes into play when organisations create propaganda in response to injuring an opposing organisation or party. This is a question raised about some of the believes and ideas of the case study analysed in depth Adbusters. The work they create questions moral rights and whether the ideas that the visualise are ethically right.
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Adbusters concern themselves for the erosion of the physical, social and cultural work but mainly tackle the on going battle of capitalism and challenge the rates in which it is happening. The message they are passionate about convicting is the fact that we don't need to follow the social conventions and consume at the rate that the public are doing so otherwise there will be nothing left. They are attempting to forge the way that we live in the future for the better. Adbusters have gone as far to propagate their own day in order to tackle capitalism. Buy Nothing Day is a day which has been put in place to challenge the values of capitalism and make people step away from what they feel is right.
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“Today, humanity faces a stark choice: save the planet and ditch capitalism, or save capitalism and ditch the planet.” – Fawzi Ibrahim
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They have a created a series of posters to promote this concept and push it into realisation. The posters that they have created propagate against corporate companies who are making money through capitalism. They
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aren't directing the work towards any companies although they have done so in the past. The fact the organisation consists of creative figures means that they can create clever pieces of graphics that catch the attention of people. Figure 11 is a clever use of the barcode relating to sales but using the lines as a jail as they are using a symbolic style highlighting that people are trapped behind bars when it comes to capitalism. The concept relates to breaking through the social conventions and escaping the values and growth of capitalism. The code at the bottom also works well as it reads ‘escape capitalist’ but in a subtle way acting as a subliminal message. This particular poster is very powerful and shows all the passionate beliefs the organisation are trying to communicate. Figure 12. uses the symbolic image of Uncle Sam and plays on iconic Fig. 11. Escape! Adbusters. Marc De Jong 2001
poster. This, like many of Adbusters work, has raised questions as to whether their work has plagiaristic connotations. They subvert previous pieces and ‘spoof’ in order to question the companies morals. But is this plagiarism ? Figure 13 is a more light hearted approach of persuasion showing a
credit card seemingly running away from its owner. In advertising their day against capitalism they have managed to create these and many more posters but have done so with a variety of design approaches whether is be subversion, symbolism or more light hearted.
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‘The power struggles are between conflicting attitudes: consumption vs. conservation; industrial and economic expediency vs. planning for the future; government complacency vs. popular protest or individual determination.’ Graphic Agitation - Social and Political
Fig. 12. Curb your Consumption - Adbusters. Bill Texas 2011
Fig. 13. BND Visa Running Adbusters. Guy Morad and Ronan Idelman. 2011
Graphics since the Sixties - Liz McQuiston
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The work of Adbusters shows comparisons to the First Things First Manifesto as the text itself shows glaring similarities as well as its own views on the use of design. The manifesto is a piece written by graphic designers, photographers and students initially published in 1964 but then updated in 2000 by the ‘ leading lights of the graphic design, artistic and visual art community’. The article was put in place in order to challenge the way in which graphic designers use there skills and whether they are being used in the right way. The updated version has many similarities to the views of Adbusters but is highlighted in a different way. The article questions the conventional use of graphic design in commercial work and considers why designers use their skills and imagination to create inessential commercial advertisements simply to pay the
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bills. They suggest that we tackle the more important problems of today such as environmental, cultural and social issues that effect the world around us as well as cultural intervention, campaigns, charitable causes etc. This highlights the work of Adbusters as using their imagination in graphic design for greater use of environmental ,social and cultural aspects. The updated article also highlights the fact that the renewal of the manifesto has been done in expectation that decades won’t pass until something is changed as it has gotten worse since 1964. The fact that the work produced by both parties are non - profit shows that the creative persons behind the ideas are not bystanders but actually care for the beliefs they are spreading. Whether the ideas are visual like Adbusters or cleverly noted within an article like the manifesto both show striking levels of persuasion in attempt to change the views on people. The First Things First manifesto in both era’s simply engaged the reality of the world around them and did so in a way that caused controversy among the creative industry.
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In conclusion this essay carefully identifies the way in which graphic designers trigger a reaction through their visual interpretations of belief’s and is done so through a variety of examples as well as a comparative case study. Adbusters ‘Buy Nothing Day’ clearly shows their passionate views against the social, cultural and environmental issues of capitalism and this is backed up by the additional ideas in the First Things First manifesto. The history of propaganda and persuasion within graphic design has evolved and, as stated, changes in areas such as design approach and visual communication developing into the more persuasive subversion and questionable uses of graphic design.
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