In an era of political upheaval and with the growing impact of online platforms on our daily lives, a new exhibition at London's Design Museum seeks to unpack and explore the emergence of new visual languages that are influencing our views, communities and institutions like never before.
From "hope", as represented by the iconic Barack Obama campaign poster by Shepard Fairey, to the many imitations that followed, including the Donald Trump "nope" meme, the exhibition will be split into three main sections. Taking a politically impartial stance throughout, the exhibition uncovers in the first section, Power: the establishment's use of propaganda to inflict control, with a lens on North Korea. Protest, the largest section of the exhibition, looks to the placards and posters used by activists and demonstrators. Last year's Grenfell Tower disaster is among the events featured, reflecting the importance of graphic design in creating solidarity within a community. The last section, Personality, delves into the characteristics of those in powerful positions, assessing the caricature-like ways Donald Trump is represented in modern art, in contrast to the Labour party "superhero" Jeremy Corbyn.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Co-curators Margaret Cubbage, from the Design Museum, and Lucienne Roberts from GraphicDesign&., have also partnered with audience intelligence platform Pulsar to create a series of data visualisations. These dynamic displays will allow the audience to interact with social discussions in real-time and thoroughly analyse the extent of the extraordinary reach of social networking. With over 160 objects and installations to engage with, visitors can also expect to have their future read by an All-Seeing Trump, walk the streets of Brazil and work on Wall Street.
Hope to Nope: Graphics and Politics 2008–2018 is at the Design Museum from 28 March to 12 August; designmuseum.org
-
Friendship: 'bromance' comedy starring Paul Rudd and Tim RobinsonThe Week Recommends 'Lampooning and embracing' middle-aged male loneliness, this film is 'enjoyable and funny'
-
The Count of Monte Cristo review: 'indecently spectacular' adaptationThe Week Recommends Dumas's classic 19th-century novel is once again given new life in this 'fast-moving' film
-
Death of England: Closing Time review – 'bold, brash reflection on racism'The Week Recommends The final part of this trilogy deftly explores rising political tensions across the country
-
Sing Sing review: prison drama bursts with 'charm, energy and optimism'The Week Recommends Colman Domingo plays a real-life prisoner in a performance likely to be an Oscars shoo-in
-
Kaos review: comic retelling of Greek mythology starring Jeff GoldblumThe Week Recommends The new series captures audiences as it 'never takes itself too seriously'
-
Blink Twice review: a 'stylish and savage' black comedy thrillerThe Week Recommends Channing Tatum and Naomi Ackie stun in this film on the hedonistic rich directed by Zoë Kravitz
-
Shifters review: 'beautiful' new romantic comedy offers 'bittersweet tenderness'The Week Recommends The 'inventive, emotionally astute writing' leaves audiences gripped throughout
-
How to do F1: British Grand Prix 2025The Week Recommends One of the biggest events of the motorsports calendar is back and better than ever
