Advocate: Eating Disorders Awareness by Brenna Paxton

ADVOCATE Eating Disorders Awareness

THE GRAPHIC IMPERATIVE Brenna Paxton Designer as Author Patrick Dooley Fall 2012

The following pages provide insight into the life of my older sister, Sarah Paxton, and her struggle with anorexia nervosa. This interview was conducted in April 2012.

Do you remember a specific event that triggered your eating disorder? This is difficult to answer because to have an eating disorder, it takes the perfect combination of absolutely every aspect of your life, including your personality. However, for an eating disorder to start a person does have to consciously decide to start dieting and I remember very clearly deciding to start dieting during March of 2003 (my junior year of high school when I was 17), and that is the one diet that spun out of control for the next several years. I had gained 10 pounds while staying the same height for the first time in my life. I had always been incredibly skinny my whole life and definitely formed an identity with it (and with being the smallest person of any given group I found myself in) and that identity was being threatened as I was naturally and healthily becoming a good, healthy weight. I had a boyfriend for the first time and I remember a comment he made when we were sitting next to each other on the floor one day: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our thighs are the exact same size,â&#x20AC;? he compared laughing a little. His point was being critical of himself that he was gangly, but I just had to be the smaller one because I had spent my entire life forming an identity with that. I was also a ballet dancer, becoming increasingly more serious about making ballet my career, and ballet demands the thinnest of bodies. I felt uncomfortable in

INSIGHT

ballet class in leotards and tights with all those mirrors and 10 or 11 extra pounds but no extra height. It is funny, though, looking back I see how fantastically healthy I looked then (and ironically I grew another inch the following year), so the image I had of myself was already skewed and confused. I was also becoming increasingly scared of graduating high school and leaving home in a year. I don’t know why I thought I had to leave home after graduation. I didn’t want to, but I couldn’t see the option to stay. I thought that if I was “I spent my entire life forming an identity with being the tiny and frail, people smallest person in any given would take care of group I found myself in.” me… want to protect me and love me more. I was trying to literally stop the hands of time so the day of “growing up” wouldn’t come. I thought, “Maybe if I am tiny enough someone will just protect me and I won’t have to deal with all these scary things that bring me so much anxiety.” I have always been prone to a lot of anxiety which has always given me an upset stomach. I just can’t eat when I am nervous. I don’t know why but I thought that I was never good enough, and I had a lot of guilt that I thought I could purify away by losing weight. All of these things were acting together to cause me to want to be as small as possible and go on that fateful diet.

I had a book geared to ballet dancers all about losing weight. I don’t remember what this book was called, but I don’t recommend it! It could be useful if someone used it responsibly, but I have a feeling that most people who get their hands on it do “When you are literally starvnot use it responsibly. ing, you go crazy. That’s This book had you meawhen it really becomes an sure the circumference eating disorder.” of all different parts of your body… thighs, upper arms, waist etc… and then mark down your goal measurements for all these parts and your goal weight and told all about how to reach those goals effectively. I, naturally, chose goals that were unrealistically small, too small. I felt unhappy with myself and I thought that becoming this smaller person would make me like myself. I have always had a tendency to be extremist, impatient, and very strict with myself. I don’t do anything half-assed and if something is bugging me, I take action to change it. For these reasons, I literally sat down and calculated out the quickest means by which I could lose this nonexistent weight to reach these tiny goals, and I was very easily able to stick to the starvation diet I consequently formed. It was really hard at first to bear the feeling of falling asleep with such a painfully empty stomach, but I conditioned myself to desire that feeling and view it as good through a punishment/reward system. I thought I

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was going to spend 2 months dieting, be “small again,” happy again, and then back to normal. I was wrong, though, because when you are literally starving, you go crazy. That’s where it really becomes an eating disorder. I want to draw notice to the fact that I seem to have been born with a tendency toward having an eating disorder. From the age of 2 years old, my mom had the hardest time with meals because I was such a picky eater. I can remember the tiniest black speck would send me into a deep disgust and a refusal to eat whatever was on my plate (this was finally reconciled when I became a vegetarian later in life, interestingly). I was the oldest child, but I desperately wanted to be the baby. In first grade I would ride the bus with my feet tippy-toed so that my thighs would be lifted up off the seat because I didn’t like how wide they looked when the relaxed muscles squished out to the side. Why didn’t I like the way it naturally looked? I don’t know. In third grade I devised a whole list of rules about which bones needed to stick out on me if I were skinny “enough” that wouldn’t be visible if I were “fat,” and I always checked to make sure they were still sticking out. These are just not normal things for a child to be thinking about and concerned with. And I can’t possibly tell you why these things concerned me in the first place. In fifth grade I was very noticeably small compared to my classmates. They made fun of me for it, and I liked the comfort of having that identity. I had reached 60 pounds in 5th grade and then I caught a terrible stomach

flu and lost 10 pounds. I remember feeling very excited about it... excited to weigh myself and see how much smaller I was. I also liked how it made people worry and therefore (the important part) be more deli- â&#x20AC;&#x153;For an eating disorder to develop, a person must have cate and gentle with me. every aspect of their life and I am a gentle spirit who their personality perfectly finds this world quite conducive to it. It is never abrasive and hard to just one thing.â&#x20AC;? handle. When I am fragile physically, it reflects the way I have often felt inside and the world responds to me by being more caring and gentle which is the way that feels best to me to be treated. So you see, for an eating disorder to develop, a person must have every aspect of their life and their personality perfectly conducive to it. It is never just one thing.

INSIGHT

How did it change or impact your family? I don’t know too well. When I was 17 and 18, still living at home, I had to spend less time with my family to keep my starvation diet a secret. I had to be a loner, but make it look like I was always with my boyfriend or friends, but actually I had to keep it a secret from them too, so I was just by myself a lot. My family missed me, and I missed them. I caused them a lot of worry and stress and sadness and pain that I would do anything to undo as if it had never happened. I don’t like that I caused them that. But this question makes me realize that I still really only know my half of the story and don’t really know what my family went through. I suppose I don’t want to know because I don’t want to hear about how I hurt them. That sounds too sad. My sister has realized her life’s mission of spreading positive body image to girls/women around the world. I do not know if she would have come to this realization without watching me struggle with an eating disorder. It is possible that that is even why we are sisters and all this was necessary to bring everyone to where we are now. We don’t take each other for granted. Also, it is hard to say how it changed us since this is the way it happened; it is the only way we know. I don’t know what would be different today if we never had that experience.

MISSION “MY SISTER HAS REALIZED HER LIFE’S E TO

OF SPREADING POSITIVE BODY IMAG

GIRLS/WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD.

I DO NOT KNOW IF SHE WOULD HAVE COME TO THIS REALIZATION WITHOUT WATCHING ME STRUGGLE WITH AN EATING DISORDER.”

“ An advocacy poster is the manifestation of a charged social or political idea designed to inform and illuminate, stimulate and inspire, agitate and attack. When finely honed it communicates without ambiguity. When smartly conceived it imparts meaning through complexity and simplification. When on target – when message and image, form and function are one – it shoots a charge into the brain that pierces the conscious and subconscious triggering action, now or later.” (Steven Heller, author and co-chair School of Visual Arts, NYC )

PROJECT SYNOPSIS

“The poster is the prime field for experimenting with visual language. It is the scene of changing ideas and aesthetics, of cultural, social, and political events.” (pierre bernard, french designer, grapus)

Our first project of the semester will be to create advocacy posters in conjunction with the Spencer Museum of Art exhibition – The Graphic Imperative: International Posters for Peace, Social Justice, and the Environment, 1965-2005. The Graphic Imperative is a select retrospective of forty years of international sociopolitical posters. Themes include dissent, liberation, racism, sexism, human rights, civil rights, environmental and health concerns, AIDS, war, literacy, and tolerance, and collectively provide a glimpse into an age of profound change. The 111 posters in this exhibition emphasize the issues of our turbulent times and endeavor to show the social, political, and aesthetic concerns of many cultures and divergent political realities. Our project will entail the design of a pair of advocacy posters – one using type and image and the other using type as image. You will be able to pick 1) the issue/ message of the poster, 2) the actual advocacy group that would sponsor the message, and 3) the targeted audience that it seeks to address.

ESSAY SUMMARY & ANALYSIS

HELLER As a manifestation of dynamic social and political ideas, advocacy posters are powerful weapons. By communicating clearly, without any doubt as to what the poster is portraying, both the conscious and the subconscious are motivated to act. Although an advocacy poster should catch eyes from a distance, it should also have a message that resonates for years. Effective posters are often the ones that are startling, rather than beautiful. Undesigned, quickly-made posters capture raw, emotional responses in a way that many designed advocacy posters can not. Trying to be too clever or clichĂŠ can trivialize the message and turn away the intended audience. In the same way that a printed letter carries more authority than an email, printed posters are more memorable.

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REACTION While I agree that an advocacy poster should be clear and direct, a poster that is clever is more memorable. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t necessarily believe that a poster should be startling in order to be effective, since a startling image can repel the viewer quickly before they understand the entirety of the message. It is an important to consider the humor involved in advocacy posters. The easiest way for a message to backfire is by accidentally trivializing the message, so I have the same opinion as Heller in regards to being overly clever in design. I also completely agree that printed advocacy posters are stronger than their digital counterparts.

ESSAY SUMMARY & ANALYSIS

WELLS Throughout history, posters have been used as a means to organize, educate, and inspire people around the world. A lack of legal, public posting spaces prevents protest posters to be hung in the United States as easily as in Europe. However, the protest poster is still a powerful tool. As long as there are areas of the world where people do not have access to the internet, the poster will continue to be the best way to share impactful messages quickly and cheaply. While printed posters are necessary to reach poorer communities, the internet has increased the uses of protest posters by directing viewers to specific websites. In a world where historical events are typically only recorded from one point of view, protest posters become records of grass-roots resistance that teach future generations about less-documented experiences. Another advantage of printed posters is their ability to catch the interest of random passersby, instead of being limited to a specific internet audience.

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REACTION The few posters that I do notice around the United States tend to be advertising for products and events. So I agree with Wells that the internet is a more actively used tool for organization than protest posters. But there have been many incidents in my life when I have found my way to a specific website only after seeing the URL on a hanging paper poster. Also, I agree that printed posters are invaluable when it comes to informing groups of people that are completely disassociated from one another, the only exception being that they happened to walk past and see the same poster.

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POSTER ANALYSIS We’ll Never Forget Wounded Knee Themptander, Christer Social Justice Themptander creates an immediate connection between the stripes of the American flag and prison bars, giving two familiar items new meaning. The poster has no text, yet the message is incredibly clear. It is an obvious statement on the oppression and unfair treatment of Native Americans in the United States. Compositionally, the dense area of stars in the upper right is balanced by the Native American’s body in the lower left. By layering the Native American’s hand and axe on top of the stripes, a seemingly flat flag turns into three-dimensional prison bars. By keeping the entire poster in black and white, the red and blue of the flag do not distract from the double meaning as prison bars. This is a successful poster, yet it is not necessarily clear that the subject is specific to Wounded Knee.

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POSTER ANALYSIS Keep Your Rosaries Out Of Our Ovaries Johns, Bethany Social Justice The first noticeable element of this poster is the text, especially since this is the only place color is present. The message is clever—since it rhymes—yet it is not overdone or cliché. A grayscale photograph of a Catholic priest is in the background, with both hands on his rosary beads. The photograph seems antiquated, suggesting that the ideas associated with the Catholic Church’s antichoice statements are antiquated as well. Reminiscent of bumper stickers, the text and color combination almost looks like the two phrases were slapped onto the image—and the statement itself is a slap in the face. This is an incredibly successful poster about keeping the Catholic religion and women’s personal choices separate.

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POSTER ANALYSIS Infantry Mosley, Andy; Pearce, Harry Social Justice This poster successfully illustrates the point that the child soldiers as infantry are, in fact, infants. With a simple color change of one word, Mosley makes viewers think twice. Harsh lighting on the boy references being outside in the bright sun where soldiers are in combat. There is a nice use of white space, and the darkest areas of the poster—the boy’s hair and eyes, the “RY” of “INFANTRY,” the gun, and the boy’s shadow—create a path for the viewer’s eye to follow in a circle, each time returning to the statement that this soldier is an infant.

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POSTER ANALYSIS Save It! (Water) Organero, Faustino Pérez Environment Purely black and white, this poster is clear and dynamic. The recognizable silhouette of a water tap is turned upside down, with a drop of water going back into the faucet, rather than dripping out of it. The only text on the poster, simply stating “save it,” is direct and concise. Even the text is made to look like droplets of water. It is interesting that the faucet silhouette is white and the background is black, because it plays tricks on the eye in regards to positive and negative space. Whether or not that design choice has a meaning or not is unclear. The poster could be stronger if that second of confusion when first looking at the poster was not an issue.

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POSTER ANALYSIS Against Violence To Women Zolezzi, Lourdes Environment Zolezzi successfully triggers an intense emotional response with this poster. My immediate reaction is to cringe, then to feel extreme amounts of pity for abused women. By using scissors and text to portray a womanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s body, the message is clear without being too graphic. The only photographic aspect of the poster is the pair of scissors, adding emphasis to how real and relevant the abuse is towards women who are forced to become nameless shadows of themselves. No heading is needed to explain the message of this poster, instead it relies on the inherent knowledge of most people that this image is very unsettling.

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POSTER ANALYSIS Eco Crime Lukova, Luba Environment It takes a little longer to process the meaning of this poster than other more successful examples. But after observing for a moment, the concept becomes apparent that a person harming nature simultaneously harms the person as well. The tree rings being duplicated inside the human body adds emphasis on the fact that humans are also a part of nature. In the top right hand corner, the only text on the page reads â&#x20AC;&#x153;Eco Crime,â&#x20AC;? but I do not think the typography is successful. In fact, the text does not seem necessary at all to communicating the message of this poster effectively.

OVERVIEW OF ORGANIZATION ISSUE: EATING DISORDERS AWARENESS Eating disorders – such as anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder – include extreme emotions, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding weight and food issues. Eating disorders are serious emotional and physical problems that can have life-threatening consequences for females and males. ANOREXIA NERVOSA is characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss. Symptoms include: •

Refusal to maintain body weight at or above a minimally normal weight for height, body type, age, and activity level

•

Intense fear of weight gain or being “fat”

•

Feeling overweight despite dramatic weight loss

•

Loss of menstrual periods

•

Extreme concern with body weight and shape

BULIMIA NERVOSA is characterized by a secretive cycle of binge eating followed by purging. Bulimia includes eating large amounts of food--more than most people would eat in one meal--in short periods of time, then getting rid of the food and calories through vomiting, laxative abuse, or over-exercising.

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Symptoms include: •

Repeated episodes of bingeing and purging

•

Feeling out of control during a binge and eating beyond the point of comfortable fullness

•

Purging after a binge, (typically by self-induced vomiting, abuse of laxatives, diet pills and/or diuretics, excessive exercise, or fasting)

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Frequent dieting

•

Extreme concern with body weight and shape

BINGE EATING DISORDER (also known as COMPULSIVE OVEREATING) is characterized primarily by periods of uncontrolled, impulsive, or continuous eating beyond the point of feeling comfortably full. While there is no purging, there may be sporadic fasts or repetitive diets and often feelings of shame or self-hatred after a binge. People who overeat compulsively may struggle with anxiety, depression, and loneliness, which can contribute to their unhealthy episodes of binge eating. Body weight may vary from normal to mild, moderate, or severe obesity. OTHER EATING DISORDERS can include some combination of the signs and symptoms of anorexia, bulimia, and/or binge eating disorder. While these behaviors may not be clinically considered a full syndrome eating disorder, they can still be physically dangerous and emotionally draining. All eating disorders require professional help.

Eating disorders are complex conditions that arise from a combination of long-standing behavioral, biological, emotional, psychological, interpersonal, and social factors. Scientists and researchers are still learning about the underlying causes of these emotionally and physically damaging conditions. We do know, however, about some of the general issues that can contribute to the development of eating disorders. NEDA acknowledges there may be a difference of opinion among experts and the literature on this topic, and we encourage readers to explore the topic further, using all means available to them. While eating disorders may begin with preoccupations with food and weight, they are most often about much more than food. People with eating disorders often use food and the control of food in an attempt to compensate for feelings and emotions that may otherwise seem over-whelming. For some, dieting, bingeing, and purging may begin as a way to cope with painful emotions and to feel in control of one’s life, but ultimately, these behaviors will damage a person’s physical and emotional health, self-esteem, and sense of competence and control. Psychological Factors that can Contribute to Eating Disorders:

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Low self-esteem

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Feelings of inadequacy or lack of control in life

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Depression, anxiety, anger, or loneliness

Interpersonal Factors that can Contribute to Eating Disorders: •

Troubled personal relationships

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Difficulty expressing emotions and feelings

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History of being teased or ridiculed based on size or weight

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History of physical or sexual abuse

Social Factors that can Contribute to Eating Disorders: •

Cultural pressures that glorify “thinness” and place value on obtaining the “perfect body”

•

Narrow definitions of beauty that include only women and men of specific body weights and shapes

•

Cultural norms that value people on the basis of physical appearance and not inner qualities and strengths

Biological Factors that can Contribute to Eating Disorders: •

Scientists are still researching possible biochemical or biological causes of eating disorders. In some individuals with eating disorders, certain chemicals in the brain that control hunger, appetite, and digestion have been found to be unbalanced. The exact meaning and implications of these imbalances remains under investigation.

•

Eating disorders often run in families. Current research is indicates that there are significant genetic contributions to eating disorders.

Eating disorders are complex conditions that can arise from a variety of potential causes. Once started, however, they can create a self-perpetuating cycle of physical and emotional destruction.

ADVOCACY GROUP: NATIONAL EATING DISORDERS ASSOCIATION The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting individuals and families affected by eating disorders. We campaign for prevention, improved access to quality treatment, and increased research funding to better understand and treat eating disorders. We work with partners and volunteers to develop programs and tools to help everyone who seeks assistance. MISSION STATEMENT: NEDA supports individuals and families affected by eating disorders, and serves as a catalyst for prevention, cures and access to quality care. HISTORY: NEDA was formed in 2001, when Eating Disorders Awareness & Prevention (EDAP) joined forces with the American Anorexia Bulimia Association (AABA) â&#x20AC;&#x201C; merging the largest and longest standing eating disorders prevention and advocacy organizations in the world. The merger was the most recent in a series of alliances that has also included the National Eating Disorder Organization (NEDO) and the Anorexia Nervosa & Related Disorders (ANRED).

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AREAS OF ADVOCACY: NEDAwareness Week: NEDAwareness Week is a collective effort of primary volunteers, including eating disorder professionals, health care providers, students, educators, social workers, and individuals committed to raising awareness of the dangers surrounding eating disorders and the need for early intervention and treatment. The Parent, Family, & Friends Network (PFN): We offer support to those whose loved ones are struggling with an eating disorder. This free program brings us together to share information, resources, and raise awareness across the country. NEDA Navigators: Navigators are volunteers that have experience navigating the complex and overwhelming systems and emotions involved with the diagnosis and process of seeking help for an eating disorder. Volunteers are trained by NEDA staff and Clinical Advisors and NEDA founders Douglas Bunnell, PhD and Ilene Fishman, LCSW, to be a knowledgeable, informal source of support and guidance to those who are new to the illness.

Media Watchdog Program: Media Watchdogs are volunteers across the country who advocate for responsible, healthy messaging in various forms of media, commending or critiquing advertisements or programs that positively or negatively impact body image and self-concept. Watchdogs pay attention to TV, radio, newspaper, magazine and internet ads or programs and send notices of ads or programs worthy of praise or protest to the National Eating Disorders Association office, and alert other Watchdogs of potential actions through the Media Watchdogs Facebook Group. Solutions Through Advocacy and Reform (STAR Program): NEDA established the STAR Program to fight for awareness, education, early intervention and prevention programs, funding for research, and improved access to treatment of eating disorders by speaking with legislators, mobilizing members, and forging alliances with other groups who share our vision.

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TARGET DEMOGRAPHIC: My intended audience is men and women who are attending college and are therefore surrounded by a wide variety of young people: someone who is involved in physical activity – specifically on a sports team – or someone who has experience with eating disorders firsthand or through a loved one. I’d like to spread awareness to people who are not specifically affected by eating disorders so that they may be more sensitive to those around them who are affected.

AUDIENCE PROFILE: Jessica is a freshman at the University of Kansas. Throughout high school, she was a member of her track and cross-country team. Now that she is at KU, Jessica goes to the Rec often with her friends, whom all encourage each other to stay healthy and lose the “freshman fifteen.” Jessica plays on an intramural volleyball team, and hopes to join the KU cross-country team during her sophomore year. Jessica listens to pop and r&b music, and since her boyfriend broke up with her a few weeks ago, she likes to distract herself by going to house parties with her friends on the weekend. Jessica is studying Journalism, but tends to procrastinate on her homework by reading Cosmo and watching Jersey Shore.

THE MONSTER ISN’T UNDER THE BED. IT’S IN THE fRIDgE.

People with eating disorders often distort the size of their food, so they’ll eat less. They distort the size of their body, so thin looks fat. Which yields a fact that isn’t distorted at all—without treatment, many won’t survive. But to read about those who have, go to myneda.org

Visual Audit

National Eating Disorders Association

People with bulimia d rupturing of the esop

How did it go from losing weigHt to losing Hope? Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;LL We Lose on this Diet? Lots of peopLe every year.

donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t just induce vomiting. They induce heart arrhythmias, intestinal bleeding and phagus. It can be life threatening, but it can also be treated. Go to myneda.org

National Eating Disorders Association

People with anorexia see themselves as much bigger than they actually are. And everyone else sees the problem as being much smaller. Truth is, anorexia has the highest death rate of any mental illness. But there are cures. Go to myneda.org

National Eating Disorders Association

Concept Statement:

Most people are not aware that eating disorders – including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder – are extreme mental illnesses, not lifestyle choices. Due to this lack of understanding, people who suffer from eating disorders are not typically given proper treatment. As a result, anorexia has the highest death rate of any mental illness. The National Eating Disorders Association works to support “individuals and families affected by eating disorders, and serves as a catalyst for prevention, cures, and access to quality care.” This poster will expose college-age students to the truth about eating disorders and provide them with the resources to learn more.

Concept Development

To Suggestâ&#x20AC;Ś urgency importance clarification necessity youthfulness distortion unsettling disturbing hidden secrets shame

embarrassment anxiety intensity fragility exposure revealing modernity relevance seriousness confusion unnerving

deformity mutilation misrepresentation explicit perturbed deception disillusionment striking fractured fragmented disoriented

DISTORT to twist awry or out of shape; make crooked or deformed to give a false, perverted, or disproportionate meaning to; misrepresent DISTURBING upsetting or disquieting; dismaying RELEVANT bearing upon or connected with the matter in hand; pertinent STRIKING attractive; impressive; noticeable; conspicuous FRAGMENTED reduced to fragments; existing or functioning as though broken into separate parts; disorganized; disunified

Concept Development

POSTER TEXT Negative Persuasion – using shock Possible Headlines: • • • • • • • • • • •

•

• •

Decision or Disease? Starved for help. An eating disorder is not a choice. It’s a serious mental illness. Silent but deadly. Ignorance kills. You know someone with an eating disorder. I have a deadly secret. Want to know a secret? If eating disorders were lifestyle choices, people wouldn’t be dying from them. An eating disorder is not just a diet. It’s how 50,000 Americans will die. The mortality rate associated with anorexia nervosa is 12 times higher than the death rate of ALL causes of death for females 15-24 years old. 5-10% of anorexics die within 10 years after contracting the disease and 18-20% of anorexics will be dead after 20 years. Anorexia is the third most common chronic illness among adolescents. 10 million Americans suffer from an eating disorder.

PROBLEM: There are many people and friends/family members that are affected by eating disorders, but they do not know who to talk to for support or advice. SOLUTION: The PFN and NEDA Navigators Programs offer support and guidance. ACTION: Go to myneda.org PROBLEM: The media is full of unhealthy messages about size, weight, and beauty. SOLUTION: The Media Watchdog program advocates for responsible messaging in various forms of media. ACTION: Go to myneda.org PROBLEM: There is a distorted view of eating disorders and people are unaware of where or how to receive proper treatment. SOLUTION: NEDAwareness Week spreads awareness and treatment options. ACTION: Participate in NEDAwareness Week by going to myneda.org

Concept Development

PROBLEM: Laws allow for eating disorder treatment not to be funded. SOLUTION: Lobby to change laws and revise the Mental Health Parity. ACTION: Go to myneda.org to find out more about the STAR Program. PROBLEM: Most people do not understand that eating disorders are serious mental illnesses. SOLUTION: Spread awareness. ACTION: Go to myneda.org PROBLEM: People are not aware that eating disorders are serious mental illnesses, and consequentially affected people are not receiving proper treatment. SOLUTION: Inform others that eating disorders are mental illnesses, especially by lobbying for better health care laws that include eating disorders. ACTION: Help save lives by visiting myneda.org

New Mood Board

CLASS 01 NOTES – 8.21 What is an advocacy poster and how does it function in our current environment? How do these advocacy posters utilize language? The headline is the front door of the poster. headline, illustration, problem, solution, action

CLASS 02 NOTES – 8.23 Clichés can be a good starting point, but try not to be TOO cliché, it makes the issue seem less serious. Grab people’s attention with a profound graphic, then inspire with a profound message.

CLASS 03 NOTES – 8.28 Positive motivation or negative motivation? Headline has to be intriguing – raises a question. Men have eating disorders too.

Anorexia nervosa has the highest death rate of any mental illness. Eating disorders are not a choice, they are serious mental illnesses. Everybody knows somebody, you just may not realize it.

CLASS 04 NOTES – 8.30 I have a deadly secret. Deadly Secret An eating disorder is not just a diet, it’s the most common way for a young woman to die. crash dieting This diet doesn’t just lose pounds. This diet loses lives. 10 million Americans are currently suffering from an eating disorder. For females 15-24 years old, the mortality rate associated with anorexia nervosa is 12 times higher than the death rate of ALL causes of death.

Design Development

CLASS 05 NOTES – 9.04 Pursue shattered pieces direction and barbie direction. Make sure the image extends across the entire page. Take my own photographs. I don’t want to focus on bad influence in the media since many people already know about that... it’s the only thing that is talked about. I want people to learn something new from these posters that is unexpected and puts emphasis on how serious the issue is. Shift the focus away from something physical to something that is mental.

Design Development

CLASS 06 NOTES – 9.06 Hard to understand that it’s a body? following contour of body varying sizes - distorted view of body

CLASS 07 NOTES – 9.11 Type: - handwritten - deteriorating What is being lost? Mentally? scale, tape measure, calorie counting Make sure the Barbies’ faces aren’t too jumbled... makes it too difficult on the viewer to interpret.

Design Development

CLASS 08 NOTES – 9.13 image poster revisions: - make one all by hand with vellum and paper, etc. - photos crisp... more contrast - photos blurry - deadly secret strips overlapping or separate - overlapping body pieces - split headline

CLASS 09 NOTES – 9.18 Emphasize the bizarre “Barbie World” I have created by using ribbon and lace. Edit out the smudges in the background texture.

CLASS 10 NOTES – 9.20 Avoid the type-as-image poster looking like a flower, more jagged. Looks like you are getting sucked into a black hole, which is similar to the experience of having an eating disorder.

CLASS 11 NOTES – 9.25 The darker type-as-image background is unsuccessful.

Design Development

ADVOCACY GROUP: National Eating Disorders Association ISSUE: Eating Disorders Awareness

Concept Statement

Concept Statement:

THIS DIE

THIS SE POUNDS.

JUST LO THIS DIET DOESN’T THIS DIET LOSES LIVES.

females illnesses – not lifestyle choices. For Eating disorders are serious mental is 12 times associated with anorexia nervosa 15-24 years old, the mortality rate death. of causes other higher than the death rate of all

LET’S STOP LOSING. VISIT MYNEDA.ORG

Final Posters

E 1 h

U O P E S O L T S U ET DOESN’T J

S DIET LOSES LIVES.

females l illnesses – not lifestyle choices. For Eating disorders are serious menta times ociated with anorexia ner vosa is 12 ass rate ity rtal mo the , old rs yea 15-24 er causes of death. higher than the death rate of all oth

LET’S STOP LOSING. VISIT MYNE

Final Posters

REFLECTION: Eating disorders awareness has always been an important issue throughout my life, so doing a project that combines my two passions of advocacy and design was an incredible experience. Since I was already involved with the National Eating Disorders Association before I began this project, I immediately knew the direction I wanted to pursue with my posters. I want to help shift our society’s perception of eating disorders away from being a simple physical habit to realizing that eating disorders can be serious mental illnesses. I also chose to change the visual representation of the National Eating Disorders Association since I believe the current color palette is too passive for the severity of the issue.

THIS DIET DOESN’T

JUST LOSE POUNDS

THIS DIET LOSES LIVES.

females illnesses – not lifestyle choices. For Eating disorders are serious mental is 12 times associated with anorexia nervosa 15-24 years old, the mortality rate causes of death. higher than the death rate of all other

LET’S STOP LOSING. VISIT MYNEDA.ORG

Reflection

This concept influenced my design decisions by guiding me in a slightly more serious direction. The contrast in the two posters represents two distinct ways that people with eating disorders may behave. The image-based Barbie poster is more forward and attention-grabbing, and the other is more quiet and passive, yet something is distorted in both situations. The disfigured Barbies and the out-of-context body parts represent the way people with eating disorders view their bodies. The shattered type poster also imitates the dark hole that a person can fall into as their eating disorder turns from a physical habit into a mental disorder. It was difficult to translate the image-based poster to a type-as-image poster, but after I started thinking about words as actual objects that could be broken or shattered, it was easier to manipulate the different elements of the poster. Since I am so passionate about this issue, there is a lot I wish I could say in a single poster. I had to constantly remind myself to stay on message, and the concept of Problem > Solution > Action helped greatly. I would like to continue designing posters for this cause by using this method. With the steps I have learned from this project, I will be able to focus on a different target audience every time and successfully deliver my intended message.

If you or a loved one may be suffering from an eating disorder, visit myneda.org for more information.