p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 14.
0px; font: 12.0px Arial; color: #111111; -webkit-text-stroke: #111111; background-color: #ffffff} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 14.
0px; font: 12.0px Arial; color: #111111; -webkit-text-stroke: #111111; background-color: #ffffff; min-height: 14.0px} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} In this essay I will be looking at three designed artefacts that explore or express political ideas. I will be assessing their efficiency, comparing and contrasting the ways in which they work. I will be writing about three contemporary designs; the refugee flag, the pink pussy hat and the bootlegged Jeremy Corbyn Nike T-Shirt. The three designs I have chosen have effected major moments in design history. I will be looking at how design can escalate from a simple clothing accessory to an iconic sign of defiance and activism towards the president of the United States, how one flag can unite the millions of refugees that are crossing seas to find safety in a new country, and the dramatic increase of votes in the 2017 election by our younger generation aided by social media and bootleg clothing.
When designing a product, the product will always have a political decision about how people should behave and communicate (NOT FINISHED) This is the newly made refugee flag. It was created by Yara Said who is a Syrian refugee. The solid orange base with the black horizontal line representing the troublesome situation of todays refugees: crossing the borders to escape prosecution, natural disasters and war.The colours are inspired by the life jackets that the refugees wore whilst fleeting the disruptive countries (1).
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I think by symbolising the flag as their own life jacket makes the flag very unique and intimate. It is a constant reminder of how brave the refugees are. The refugee team competed for the first time ever in the Olympic Games 2016. 10 athletes with no national team, no flag and no anthem. The flag was originally created for the team to carry. However, the International Olympic Committee did not let them carry the flag as it did not represent an official Olympic federation. This did not stop the supporters and athletes from all over the world displaying the flag in an act of unity.
Designing a flag to collectively assemble a team is sending a message of hope and involvement to all refugees around the world. It was an influential symbol for those that had nothing. Raising a flag to those who have been forced to flee from their own countries.
The orange colour represents courage and sacrifice, I find these colours create a very memorable flag. With it being increasingly popular in the media people will start to recognise the flag with the discussion. The flag is also creating job opportunities for refugees. Makers Unite is hiring refugees to create different sized flags from life jackets that were worn by the refugees themselves. When they arrive in Europe they are helped and given the opportunity to start a new life. Reusing their own life jackets by cutting away their memories and are left with a symbol of solidarity.
I personally think this is a very creative way or removing their fear and welcoming them with joy. We have a duty to other people, and we should protect their rights and freedom. Therefore, to me, the flag represents human rights. The flag was exhibited at MoMA and The Victoria and Albert Museum, it marks a major moment in history.
Not only has this design established a new nation in one of the most organised and formal events in the world. But it has sent out to all refugee camps a symbol of hope an unity. The flags meaning contrasts with the past refugees society laws and instead, welcomes them. Putting this flag in these museums boosts more attention to the 22.5 million refugee1 crisis that is happening at this very moment. It is continuously receiving recognition and will continue to do so. This flag is an example of political change through the power of design. Once Donald Trump became president, a feminist rally took place in Washington.
Hundreds of thousands of women came wearing a magenta pink knitted hat. The wooly hats had two pointy cat-like ears which associated with Trump’s indecent comment about grabbing women’s genitals. With todays society operating with screens and social media, an effective protest means media visibility. The pink cat ears creates a sense of humour and mockery which attracts attention, this attention is then directed to their message of solidarity. Giant crowds of pink were shown from aerial views on television. To me, this was very powerful to watch, it was like a field of pink flowers acting as a physical manifestation of outrage towards Trump. Even just contributing by creating a hat means standing up to Trump even if you are not at the march, as it is boosting the community’s morale and empowered the resistance of authority.Krista Suh and Jayna Zweiman created these hats due to common interests in their passion for women’s rights.
(3) What started as a small project amongst a group of friends eventually snowballed into a global project with consistent marches. Templates and tutorials to create the ‘pussy hats’ became available online. Social media assisted the adoration of the wooly hats which certainly widened the movement. The hat is more than just to keep your head warm, it symbolises the power of a political resistance and gives a statement of solidarity to women. A wider community is formed when hats are created from all over the world and are sent in to collection points. Huge amounts of hats were being made due to the circulation of instructions and ‘how to’s’ on social media.
People began customising their own wooly hats by adding accessories such as pom poms and whiskers. Creating your own unique hat added personality and individuality. The community were reviving hand made craftsmanship with environmentally sustainable design, intimate labour and you can make it in on your sofa. Unintentionally contrasting with Donald Trump’s ‘Make America Great Again’ hat which is mass produced for profit.
Krista Suh and Jayna Zweiman attended and encouraged others to try “knitting circles” which is when groups of women sit in a circle, chat and knit. “a powerful gatherings of women, a safe place to talk, a place where women support women” (Pussyhat Project Knit Pattern). This is where the idea of “pussy hats” came from. The colour pink represents love, affection and harmony – the opposite of many of Trump’s remarks. The hat resembles a strong collective identity but does not take action on a social and political change.
The hats are only visually showing action by disapproving Trump’s human rights laws. They are not changing laws but instead standing up to them. For if they were to not protest then nothing would happen.
This is a mass demonstration of how design can be used as a political medium in the form of activism.When comparing the hat with the refugee flag, we can see they are both conveying hope and unity, and they are both encouraging a political change. Although tThe fact that this political movement has formed from a simple knitting group to a social movement UNFINISHED^ This is the Jeremy Corbyn Nike T-shirt created by Bristol Streetwear. It shows a combination of the Nike tick and the Labour Party leaders surname above. It was released during the 2017 elections and instantly became popular with many Labour supporters. Bootlegging is a type of underground fashion where famous brand logos are altered by other brands or artists to create a subversive effect.
Bristol Streetwear have taken the historical 1978 Nike logo, and replaced the ‘Nike’ text with ‘Corbyn’ – leader of the Labour Party. The red screen printed ‘Corbyn’ now sits under the famous swoosh. Bootlegging tends to be looked down upon because it will always be defacing copyrighted material. It is a rebellious way of expressing provocative views. This then becomes appealing to a young groups of people who may not be interested in politics. Jonny Sportswright who runs a increasingly popular bootlegging store called Sports Banger created a T-shirt with the NHS logo above the Nike swoosh logo. It was made to show support towards the junior doctor strike in late 2016.
The tees were sold online with a percentage going towards the campaign. He even sent out free T-shirts to those who worked for the NHS. Jonny received letters from multibillion dollar company Nike about illegal copyrighted material.
I recently bought this T-shirt and within the packaging he had put multiple photocopies of copyright letters from Nike. Jonny was metaphorically sticking his middle finger up to corporate greed by ignoring the messages and carrying on printing the T-shirts. (6)Streetwear and sportswear are very popular for teenagers in todays society. Social media is where you go to show off your latest purchases.
It is inescapable, you can buy streetwear from Gucci to H&M, expensive designer brands to fabricated market stalls. Most mens clothing styles today are adopted from streetwear. The large nike swoosh in the middle of the chest is a legendary sportswear/running-wear design. It is worn a great deal by the younger working class.
Combining a sportswear brand (that is popular in the working class) with a politician is a great approach to get them to vote. (5)Jeremy Corbyn had a lot of success with Britains younger generations. The polls showed that the votes of 18 to 24 year-olds was significantly higher than in the past three general elections (4) His popularity and success formed over social media. His attempt to engage in fashion and branding shows signs of genuine political engagement and dependability. Articles and videos of Corbyn engaging with problems that our younger generation want fixing are shared around social media, boosting morale and encouraging young people to vote. During the 3 month period of the election he developed in to a political hero to teenagers, becoming the top stories on social media pages.
Wanting a country that’s fair to everyone, where everyone’s happy, with poverty eradicated concludes much of his manifesto. University fees removed and NHS budgets increased are policies that interested me. Corbyn encourages an optimistic view on society for everyone. The unexpected turnout for the younger generations that voted, shows the powerful impact we have. Political parties should be more engaging with us as we are the future.
