Dedicated to clever and innovative trends of art and design in activism.

We seek out artists from around the globe who are using their talents for social change. We design for artists and activists at our other website.

IllegalBillboards.org Goes Live

James David wrote this post at 10:00 am on July 23rd, 2008.

The Anti-Advertising Agency started the week off with the announcement of IllegalBillboards.org, a collaboration between AAA and IllegalSigns.ca to identify and remove illegal billboards and signs in New York City.

IllegalBillboards.org consists of a forum, listserv, and blog where you can learn how to investigate an illegal sign and track progress. This project got started at last month’s Illegal Billboard workshop at Eyebeam and we’re just beginning. We want to welcome you to join us.

Visit IllegalBillboards.org for more information

Photo credit.

No comments

From Punk to Proudhon

James David wrote this post at 11:38 am on July 21st, 2008.

Discover one designer’s personal journey as he explores:

how do I, as an individual ‘designer’ interested in making socially concerned work, [design] in a way that is inclusive, worthwhile, and ultimately empowering — not just for myself, but for those around me?

Jared Davidson’s account is one of uncovering essential ideas and ideals in social design.  More than a biography, he delves into social change strategies via cultural production, and even gives us a shout out at the end of the article.

From Punk to Proudhon [PDF] is available as a print-ready zine, or online, from the Garage Collective MySpace page.

No comments

The Torture Playlist Stickers

James David wrote this post at 10:11 am on July 15th, 2008.

Mother Jones’s Torture Playlist includes the music used in American military prisons to torture detainees, and ranges from Christina Aguilera to Sesame Street.  I’ve developed the stickers below to raise awareness about this form of torture

Used in Torture CD Sticker

Using address labels - sized 2.25″ x 0.75″ - you can affix these stickers to CDs in your local record shop and make a small political statement about state violence. Download the PDF here.

There’s no copyright on these, so feel free to spread widely, with and without permission.  If you take some pictures of your work, let us know!

For your convenience, here’s the Torture Playlist:

8 comments

The Law of the Letter: Typography and Nationalism

James David wrote this post at 11:55 am on July 14th, 2008.

PRINT Magazine’s July/August edition contains an article on the role of type in politics by Social Design Notes author John Emerson.  The article details the many ways that states have used typography in creating nationalism (sometimes to the point of dictatorial uniformity), as well as the ways that social movements have used type to create identities for marginalized groups - well worth the read.

Also, John encourages readers to see the typography section of Social Design Notes for reference and further reading.

Typography & Nationalism

Illustration by Joon Mo Kang

No comments

Add Art

James David wrote this post at 11:49 am on July 3rd, 2008.

Updated: AddArt does not yet work in Firefox 3, but they are seeking coders to get it running.

AddArt is an extension for the Firefox browser which removes advertising and replaces it with art.  Steve Lambert of the Anti-Advertising Agency is the force behind this effort, which is compatible with Firefox 3 (and other browsers) and is something I enjoy daily.

Add Art Demo

3 comments