Central Proposition:
Communication Design can be used to motivate young adults to
change their behaviour towards reducing their consumption.
Communication Design can be used to motivate young adults to
change their behaviour towards reducing their consumption.
Excessive Consumerism is the issue. People in the Western world are filling their lives with more material objects than we will ever truly need. The majority of our posessions provide us with a fleeting satisfaction and we feel little remorse when we quickly throw them away.
Now why should we care? Because this type of lifestyle is destroying the planet and affecting our overall well-being. The solution is to change our behaviour and perspectives around the objects
that we possess.
that we possess.
I have set out to conduct both primary and secondary research in order to assist me in finding a design solution. I will be using the theory of the extended self that Russell Belk introduced. It states how individuals' valued objects have the capability to represent our identity and the self (Ahuvia, 2005). Additionally, the idea that our possessions are vessels for memory and experience will also be part of the framework for my project (Muntean, Plate and Smelik, 2017).
Proposal Poster, June 2019
Primary Research
I have collected a series of images of individuals’ most treasured items accompanied with the key values that they attach to them. I found that a significant amount said that their objects connect them to loved ones or experiences that they have had. In response to this, I created a prototype where I laid out these values in the form of a checklist. This was put into a booklet form that stood alongside the images of some of their possessions.
My results from this show that people are already aware of the values that are carried by their loved possessions. Similar to my prototype, I will emphasize these values in the work that I create. I intend for this to be in the form of a staged campaign that will reach individuals when they are purchasing objects. This will be achieved through using both physical and digital platforms. My plan is to develop and experiment with various techniques of getting the message across, through multiple touch points.
Primary Research Image collection Survey
Prototyping
Prototype Booklet Front cover
Prototype Booklet last spread
Additionally, I created posters that had similar questions to those in the booklet and placed them on Manners street. One of them had the question ‘Where could you see this object in five years?’. This challenges those walking past to think about the future of something that they would not normally take into consideration. For this work, I was inspired by the artist Barbara Kruger’s use of bold colours and confronting statements. I placed them next to a shopping window that had a for sale sign. I intended for my work to be a protest towards it. I witnessed a few people slowing down to look at them. Individuals walking past did not expect to see something that was directly opposing what is traditionally in this space.
Prototype Posters
