DESIGN 961

Cancer, Hope & Life Part II

2009-06-30T03:28:00.006+03:00

Iranian designers' contribution to San Ignacio de Loyola exhibition to fight cancer was quite remarkable.
Here is a pick of some of the best visuals made in Iran and submitted to this international poster contest and show.

Cancer, Hope & Life

2009-06-30T01:35:00.007+03:00

scare cancer with healthy food

San Ignacio de Loyola University, Art & Design programme has organised an international poster exhibition entitled: “Cancer, Hope And Life” that was held June 19 in Lima, Perú.
More than 200 posters were submitted, with 77 posters making it to the final selection. Countries like Iran, Lebanon, South Africa, Mexico, Chile, Colombia and Perú have contributed with their work. San Ignacio de Loyola University, conscious of its social role, managed to create a network of professionals and students of different cultures, to team up and design toward giving hope an life to those who are fighting cancer in their daily lives.
A worldwide touring exhibition is set to follow this year.
As for Lebanon’s involvement, there were seven posters from the Lebanese American University (LAU) that got selected (six were designed by students and one is the work of a professor).
The following are the shortlisted Lebanese contributions along with a sample of good other visuals also submitted from LAU students.

get examined, you won't regret it

cancer isn't an illusion

No war, No blood for oil!

2009-06-20T00:40:00.010+03:00

Here is sample of bright graphic visual representations of our world--design expression that have the power to (and should) engage the viewer in debates and controversies around the causalities of war.

Social communication
By the World Wild Fund (WWF)

Such graphic efforts trigger greater awareness towards major issues.

Our world is in dire need of serious creative thinking that can help fight meaningless wars and increasing deplorable greed.

It's simple math indeed!

What Design 961 is seeking is a redirection of our creative communication resources toward the things that will make lives better. Toward the effort to make our world, better.

By Frank Stillitano

By Rubyred

By Scott Robinson

Let's engage genuinely in graphic activism for a better home on planet earth!
The duty of the designer is to defeat the lie!

Posted By Hussein S. Jaafar

Who is the terrorist

2009-03-09T23:47:00.009+02:00

The highly renowned Abu Ghraib lockup, also dubbed "Torture Central” by soldier/author Michael Keller, this global symbol of abuse and human rights violations, has been re-branded at a later time and named 'Baghdad Central Prison.'

A backward glance at year 2004...
Abu Ghraib got its infamous reputation thanks to the now iconic figure of a hooded and wired Iraqi prisoner--believed to be Satar Jabar--instructed that he would be electrocuted if he fell off the box he's standing on; but there is also the other unbearable image of a naked, prostrated Iraqi prisoner, crawling on the end of a leash held by wicked-ugly-sleazy-frustrated-bitch, Private Lynndie England, who posed in several of the horrific photos that made the name Abu Ghraib equivalent to massive cruelty, and allowed the public opinion to scan the darkest side of human nature.

According to Donald Rumsfeld, many more pictures and videotapes of the abuses, tortures, humiliations at Abu Ghraib exist.
Beginning in 2004, accounts of all possible, unimaginable, unacceptable, horrific abuses inflicted to prisoners, came to light. The shocking scandal broke along with a widespread public outrage, specially in the Arab world where many felt personally offended, insulted, and enraged.

The now familiar yet immeasurably wicked and disturbing pictures of barbarism and torture at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison have raised many troubling questions: How did torture become an accepted practice at Abu Ghraib? Did U.S. government policies make it possible? How much damage has the aftermath of Abu Ghraib had on America's credibility as a defender of freedom and human rights around the world?

I'm certainly not the only one who is more outraged by the outrage and treatment of human beings by The US Army. It was pretty obscene, to say the least. The blood-boiling pictures made--am pretty sure-- the majority of the planet angry. Abu Ghraib officially closed on March 9, 2006. But nobody forgot that unprecedented happening. Some people have expressed their feelings with subversive design, specially through a stinging satire of the two most familiar photos (hood & leach).

The imagery Design 961 is displaying within this post are but a few of the load of parody and critical stances made by street artists and designers determined to speak loudly about the arrogant, shameful and degrading acts committed by the Americans.
View for yourself and hope that more socially responsible designers as such inspire like-minded people to do good design, as David Berman recommends --in his book "Do Good Design: How designers can change the world" --and help repair the world.

Posted by Ghada Azzi

Peace Out from Design 961

2009-03-01T07:05:00.001+02:00

'Salam' is designed by Emeraldgreen

Design by Ash Laws from RedBubble

Hello, Salam to anyone and everyone who has just stumbled across this newly opened space, labeled Design 961.

We are a community-based collective, committed to practicing The Art of Communication and inspiring good design.

At Design 961, we are attached to anything that engages or anyone who addresses political and social issues. The array of our interests is quite broad. Themes ranges from capitalism, industrialisation, consumerism, human rights, political persuasion, architecture & urbanism, corporatism & advertising...

...It is surely about opposing to wars, terrorism, racism, intolerance, discrimination...

We look forward to reflecting about the concepts of democracy, freedom, peace, borders, patriotism etc. and pondering around earth matters & sustainability...

At Design 961, we passionately believe in cultural activism and can't but advocate for the importance of art that engages social concerns; and as such, Design 961 is keen on promoting individuals, events, projects dealing with contemporary politically engaged art.

Am not sure how much artists worldwide, or maybe more specifically in the Arab world, are aware of the power they have to make a difference when they choose to thoughtfully address political and community-based issues either individually or collectively. Design 961 will make politically and socially engaged art practices visible and will initiate projects of such breed.

Anyhow, at Design 961, we hope that by sharing our colourfull bubbles, we will be inspiring our visitors to get into cultural activism & grasp how much social & political engagement are worthwhile the pursuit. Stay Tuned!

Design by Tauba Auerbach

Posted by Ghada Azzi

Designers for Palestine Libre

2009-02-28T22:29:00.007+02:00

There is a definite need to empower the people by bringing their attention around issues that matters most to them-- usually in relation to their respective belief, community, environment...
One powerful communication tool is definitely the design of poster art supported by simple and bold visuals. Posters are primarily and commonly used to address cultural matters, to generate socio-political awareness and engage with a wide audience.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been waging for ever, involving of course like in any war, an extraordinary propaganda posters that keep on proliferating on both sides to stir sympathy, compassion or simply trigger awareness.

This post features artists' take on the blood-bath that took place in the Gaza strip, where a brutal war started raging around New Year eve [27 Dec. '09].

The selected body of work is political art at its best. There is no harsh political ideology among these artists; in some cases, there is no political analysis, only a representation of the issue itself, as in an unjust war. Some of these works succeed as an effective form of protest, a call to action, or a simple statement. A lot depends on the artists' perspectives and background.
But one thing is sure: they all seem to know exactly how to make an image speak.

For more visual design expressions on the war on Gaza, visit ArabAd blog

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Posted by Ghada Azzi