Flicking through the pages of this month’s Communication Arts magazine – a special ten-year anniversary issue on interactivity – I was intrigued to find one of the award-winners described as being part of the “creative activist movement”. Wha? It turns out that the company, Say It Loud!, is a new ad agency that has simply adopted the visual and verbal rhetoric of protest, without any of the political commitments that that might imply. Worse still, the judges swallowed it whole:
“A virtual gathering place for design expressions from the creative activist movement, the site is as fresh as a spray-painted wall. Viewers can browse work, contact the creatives or post their own expressions.” “The camera movement on this site is interesting. There are also nice, punchy graphics and easy-to-access content. Very stylish.” says Grace Stanat; “Great animation of a flat-style illustration provides a lot of depth and motion.” says Sasha Kurtz.
Come on, people. Given the political climate we live in, I find it astonishing – yet gnawingly predictable – that something as depthless and critically unreflective as Say It Loud! can pass itself off as “creative activism” (whatever the hell that means). The fact that it took CA along for the ride just underscores the degree to which digi-chops trump ethical sensibilities every time. Does anyone remember “First Things First”?
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of related interest, some posts on the appropriation of radicalism on speak up:
Hazardous Freedom
We Are You
State of the State of Protest
This is a really interesting issue that I’d love to delve further into. I had a long discussion with Tom Gleason about these things without coming to any sort of resolution. Is there an “authentic” language of dissent? can a language be developed that can’t be appropriated? Would it even be desireable? etc.
man that say it loud site just makes me sick.
Hi Kevin,
Thanks for the comments. You wrote, in part: ‘Is there an “authentic” language of dissent? can a language be developed that can’t be appropriated? Would it even be desireable? etc.’ For me, it’s not all that helpful to try to think in those terms – kind of ‘is it or isn’t it?’ Rather, since we’re all on a moving train, there are instances and moments and each one must be thought through as and when it occurs. Say It Loud! just seemed so egregious I felt I had to say something for my own peace of mind (I guess that’s blogging…). Most examples – I hope – are rather less certain.
this is a school book example that should be used in class to show the perversion of cooption.
i have sent this email to the company (below). hmm, i am really curious if i’l lget an answer.
hey guys- iam curious: do you really think of your selves as activists? i mean what you do here is as far away from activism as it can be. you are using acivist language to appear cool, hip and radical but what you do is commercial mainstream. you are even appealing to people to promote your logo in a activist manner. i mean, id like to start a dialogue with you , this is not only about criticism, but hey- let’s be serious. do you really think you guys are activists? or are you aware that what you do is a very cheap trick? i am curious and looking forward to your answer.
oliver
here we go- this is the answer from “Speak loud”. I’ll answer tommorow.
“Oliver >
THX for your words. everyone is entitled to an opinion and I totally
respect yours.
I would love to start a dialogue with U. It looks like U have chosen a
more socio/political driven activist movement while we have chosen a
commercial creative movement. I believe there is room for both of us in
this big world. U have every right to label our work as “commercial
mainstream” — tho that is not the goal, our activist goal is to
slowly drive clients away from the expected/commercial – one step at a
time. I respect what U are doing with memefest. love the work and the
philosophy – best of luck 2U. We, however, have different goals and i
believe we can both fall under the activist label. Do all politicos
believe in the same party platforms? the same applies to activism, of
course, that is my opinion.
your turn…”
Julio Lima
Creative Activist
SAY IT LOUD!
Is that for real?
It looks like that response was written by a thirteen year old girl just learning to use the internet. Is that part of the whole “attempt-to-be-hip” thing, or is this person just a moron who can’t type “you”?
SIL is trying to pull off an andre the giant has a possee without (a) the possee or (b) the purpose.
A number of years (aeons) ago IBM advertised its OS/2 Warp computer operating system by appropriating the visual language of (post-Modern American) dissent.
The ad was a billboard showing a typical computer ad with something like “Overthrow the system” “scrawled” across it in faux-graffiti.
As for the issue of the language of dissent, I believe that there are several, the two that stand out I would define as European Modernist and American post-Modernist.
Adbusters-style appropriation of corporate logotypes and style fits into the latter, whilst many of the protest posters (etc.) here in Europe follow a more “traditional” Modernist aesthetic.
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