Tag: Tell a different story

Stop the virus for good

Objective:

Create language to support the larger goal of ensuring that publicly funded COVID meds are available to everyone, sustainably priced, and free at the point of delivery.

The Project:

This a slogan anyone can use in the campaign for a People’s Vaccine.

STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Put it on a poster.

Share it on social media. #FreeTheVaccine #PeoplesVaccine

What worked?

It’s short and sweet. The wordplay of “for good” positions accessible COVID medicine as both effective and morally necessary.

About this project
Creators:
  • Free the Vaccine for COVID-19

August, 2020

Writing

,

5 words

Public Domain

PAID!

A social media post to show your tax dollars have already paid to create COVID related medicines and vaccines, why pay again?

STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Share it on social media. #FreeTheVaccine #PeoplesVaccine

Print it and post it.

Build a mail campaign around it.

Objective:

To make people aware that their tax dollars were used for COVID related research. The tax day dates were used on the ‘bill’ to reflect when we have paid.

About this project
Creators:
  • Stacy Early

July, 2020

Image/graphic

United States, Memphis

Facebook Post size

Creative Commons BY-NC

Download Original/High-Resolution File: PAID.png



What worked?

I think that it’s direct in saying by paying for something with our taxes we shouldn’t have to pay an inflated price for the finished product later. And that since we all pay taxes, we all should have access to the medicines and vaccines.

Other Notes:

  • Original files can be provided for exhibition

Reflections from Stacy Early

What was the process/journey of creating this work?

Hearing from the Free the Vaccine leadership group that our tax dollars are paying for COVID related research, then having our tax day delated due to COVID was the inspiration for this.

What would be your next steps, building on this idea, if you had a million dollars and all the time and skills in the world?

It would be fun to send this to every person that paid taxes as a type of voucher for them to send to the big pharma companies to claim their ‘free’ vaccine.

A Covid-19 Vaccine Won’t Save The World.

Objective:

This images were the result of dynamic feedback from the DogOwl Lab, and combining of messages as well as the imagery of the globe, to create a new poster series for the public space.

The Project:

Various (three) panoramic, striking pictures of the globe taken from space, with the message in front in two parts:
“A COVID-19 Vaccine Won’t Save the World.” And then,
“Only A Free One Can Do That.”

STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Print it and post it.

Design it differently.

What worked?

The image was reused and adapted in several other contexts.

About this project
Creators:

July, 2020

Image/graphic

United Kingdom, Cambridge

A3 size

Creative Commons BY-NC

Link to Original or High-Res file

Other Notes:

NB — this work can be reproduced on site by printing on any material that seems appropriate to the curator!

  • Original files can be provided for exhibition
  • The work can be reproduced on site with instructions (provided)

Links:

  • N/A

Reflections from Sofia Weiss Goitiandia

What skills or perspectives did the collaborators bring to this?

The DogOwl Lab was super helpful. We kind of got on a role with combining messages and different imagery. These images were borne out of that.

UCLA vs USC Mascot Stop Motion Animation

Objective:

Playing on the long standing sports rivalry between schools, this animation was created as part of a social media push to encourage UCLA to sign the Open Covid Pledge before USC.

The Project:

Images of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and University of Southern California (USC) mascots, made entirely of cut paper, are animated to depict the UCLA Bruin kicking the USC Trojan out of frame, and then ringing the Victory Bell.

STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Make it specific to your community.

What worked?

The humor

About this project
Creators:

July, 2020

Image/graphic, Video

United States, Los Angeles

7 second video, GIF

Public Domain

Other Notes:


The cut paper elements were assembled and photographed by Kaity, and Vivian added background, digitized the animation, and formatted the animation for various social media platforms.

    Original files can be provided for exhibition

What skills or perspectives did the collaborators bring to this?

Vivian has been very encouraging of the idea of stop motion throughout the lab, so it was a true collaboration between the two of us to make this happen. I think we both are pleased with the results.

A PANDEMIC LIMERIK

Objective:

Initially the limerick was an effort to get published during poetry month, but the zine was just an effort to keep creating

The Project:

a printable file to be shared, printed colored, and folded into a little zine.

https://www.facebook.com/architectkl/posts/10106736906731858
STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Print it and share it.

Redesign it.

Write your own version.

What worked?

its really cute, and the limerik is memorable.

About this project
Creators:

July, 2020

Image/graphic

United States, Pittsburgh

8 1/2 X 11

Public Domain

Download Original/High-Resolution File: free-the-vaccine.pdf

Other Notes:

  • A set of instructions exists on how to make this work
  • Original files can be provided for exhibition
  • The work can be reproduced on site with instructions (provided)

Reflections from Kisha Patterson

What was the process/journey of creating this work?

it was very collaborative and it felt like a small thing to move the world to a nearly insurmountable goal.

What were some of the responses to this work?

a little joy

If someone else were going to make/use/do something like this, what advice would you give them?

start small, it cold get bigger

Free the Vaccine article in the Columbia Political Review

Objective:

Broaden the reach of Free the Vaccine and its Columbia action and get members of the Columbia community to support it by signing the Open Covid Pledge.

The Project:

An article about Free the Vaccine, the need for its work, and specific activism focused on Columbia University in the City of New York.

STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Write an essay for a local publication.

What worked?

The Columbia Political Review was very excited to publish an article on this topic and alert its readers to critical medicine access and equity issues around COVID-19. The author was likewise excited to learn about the many intricacies of the issues, write about them, and share the article with her Columbia network and her networks at large.

About this project
Creators:

July, 2020

Writing

United States, New York

2,100 words

Creative Commons BY-NC-SA

Link to Original or High-Res file

Other Notes:

  • The work can be reproduced on site with instructions (provided)

Links:

Reflections from Rachel Gita Karp

What was the process/journey of creating this work?

I knew very little about medicine access and equity issues before joining Free the Vaccine. Weekly FTV meetings gave me a strong initial understanding, but I spent weeks researching a ton more before I felt like I could be any kind of authority and write about the problems that have and will arise around COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics. It was challenging to learn so much about something so new, but I’m very grateful to have gained this understanding and to continue to share it beyond this article.

What were some of the responses to this work?

I posted about the article on my social media and had lots of people from college respond in support of it. Even people I hadn’t had much interaction with since graduating (a decade ago) liked it or commented on it. As reaching the Columbia community was the goal, that felt like a huge success.

What would be your next steps, building on this idea, if you had a million dollars and all the time and skills in the world?

A few ideas: Following up with each and every person I know who went to Columbia and making them read the article and sign the Open Covid Pledge. Hosting a panel or panel series at Columbia in which some of the people quoted in the article talk about the need for open licensing around COVID research and ensuring all testing, treatment, and vaccines are available to all and free at the point of delivery. Having all of these people send the article to Columbia administration and demand they sign the Open Covid Pledge.

Public Good (a free one can)

Objective:

Create a way for individuals to show their support for the Open Covid Pledge, build public support for the campaign.

The Project:

An image people can post on social media to encourage others to support the Open Covid Pledge. It underscores that COVID meds should be considered a public good.

STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Share it on social media. #FreeTheVaccine #PeoplesVaccine

Design it differently.

What worked?

The phrase “Public. Good.” makes an important, concise point about how we should be thinking about COVID tests, treatments, and vaccines.

About this project
Creators:
  • Laura Holzman
  • Fiona Davey
  • Rebecca Bray
  • Other Free The Vaccine contributors who gave feedback on the Salk Labs forum

July, 2020

Image/graphic, Online/web thing, Writing

United States, Indianapolis

variable

Creative Commons BY-NC-SA

Download Original/High-Resolution File: PublicGood_AFreeOneCan_IG_pink-2.png

Other Notes:

  • Original files can be provided for exhibition

Reflections from Laura Holzman

What skills or perspectives did the collaborators bring to this?

This image came out of a big exchange of ideas in the DogOwl squad on the Salk Labs forum. I had been using the tag line “Public. Good.” for a poster, and Fiona was working with the rejoinder about how a vaccine alone can’t end the pandemic but a free one can. Rebecca put them together and added a syringe. We had a great exchange about how to make the syringe look beneficial, not scary, which informed the choice of colors here and the decision to use the syringe to underline the key phrase.

A Vaccine Won’t Save the World, A Free One Will

Objective:

The objective of this poster was to clearly communicate the driving mission of the Free the Vaccine campaign to a wide audience and bring attention to the fact that a COVID-19 vaccine must be free & accessible in order for the pandemic to end. The poster also worked to serve as a call to action for viewers to sign their individual support to the Open COVID Pledge, adding global pressure to institutions to sign on as well.

The Project:

A black poster with an image of a syringe floating over a cartoon-like globe with the phrase “a vaccine won’t SAVE THE WORLD. A FREE ONE WILL.” in block white and pink letters. Underneath this image is a paragraph stating “Making sure the COVID-19 vaccine is free and accessible in all parts of the world is key to ending the pandemic. A vaccine alone won’t save us, but a free one will. Sign the Open COVID Pledge.” At the very bottom is a link in blue “freethevapcine.org/sign”.

STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Print it and post it.

Revise the text.

Design it differently.

What worked?

In working with other FtV volunteers and feedback from activist Avram Finkelstein, I think that this poster was able to evolve into a final product that achieved communicating in a very precise way. The imagery and text also effectively connects with the emotional piece of feeling that the world is under threat and needs saving.

About this project
Creators:
  • Fiona Davey

July, 2020

Image/graphic

United Kingdom, Cambridge

1587×2245

Creative Commons BY

Download Original/High-Resolution File: 2.png

Other Notes:

  • Original files can be provided for exhibition

Reflections from Fiona Davey

What was the process/journey of creating this work?

My squad (Seal-3) had been working to approach the virologist Hanneke Schuitemaker working to lead the vaccine initiative at Janssen Pharmaceuticals under Johnson and Johnson. While researching our protagonist, we came across an interview in which she said “treatments save lives, vaccines save populations”. Something about this phrasing really stuck in my head and so when we began to work on creating graphic designs combining images with concise phrases, I had already been thinking about the words and ideas juxtaposed around a vaccine as salvation. While attending one of our weekly meetings and upon hearing about this new mission, the phrase “A vaccine won’t save the world. A free one will.” just appeared in my mind. I began workshopping different ideas of imagery to combine with the phrase. After a lot of helpful feedback from other FtV volunteers and mentors, the poster came to the design we ended with.

What were some of the responses to this work?

There were some really exciting responses to this work including feedback from Avram Finkelstein that the phrase “A vaccine won’t save the world. A free one will.” was the gold standard for concise and clear communication.

Monopolies on Meds

Description:

Image that could be for a Facebook post or a sticker.

Objective:

A pithy message that will hopefully direct people to the site or to ask what it’s about.

About this project
Creators:
  • Dog Owls – Laura Holzman (others for the poster/wording?), Stacy Early

July, 2020

Image/graphic, Online/web thing, Print

United States, Memphis

Facebook Post size

Creative Commons BY-NC

Download Original/High-Resolution File:

What worked?

This got the likes on Facebook, however don’t know if anyone went to the FTV site to find out more.

Other Notes:

Reflections from Stacy Early

What skills or perspectives did the collaborators bring to this?

Because I am not a writer it was great to work with others who could come up with a pithy message and then I could play with it for different uses. There is a poster that contains this message with a longer explanation so this, a twitter graphic, and the poster can be used simoultaneously for greater impact.

Interpretive Statement

User Instructions

Print it and stick it!

Share it on social media. #FreeTheVaccine #PeoplesVaccine

Goodnight Stories for Rebel Scientists

Objective:

As a project, Goodnight Stories for Rebel Scientists aimed both to start conversations with scientists and incentivize them to sign the Open COVID Pledge. As an interesting project/piece of art the book was meant to captivate the attention of scientists we reached out to. Then it aimed to incentivize them by offering recognition of their work by including them among a collection of other important figures, IF they signed the OCP or worked in some other way to free the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Project:

Goodnight Stories for Rebel Scientists is the beginning of a book that tells the tales of scientists and access to medicines champions who worked diligently to end the COVID-19 pandemic in a just and equitable way. The book is a series of square images. The front cover is dark blue with the title “Goodnight Stories for Rebel Scientists” with drawn images of a syringe, the COVID-19 virus, an erlenmeyer flask, and a face wearing a mask. Following the cover are entries for two scientists, Hanneke Schuitemaker and Marion Koopmans. Each entry has a story written about the scientist and a portrait of them made by different artists. The last page of the book draft features an email written to the featured scientists asking for their help finishing their story in the book and to sign the Open COVID Pledge.

STRATEGIES:
TRY THIS:

Make a version for your target.

What worked?

The project helped us get the attention of Marion Koopman’s assistant. It also brought us in contact with access to medicines champion Ellen ‘t Hoen who gave our group instrumental advice in carrying forward with the campaign and who will also be featured in the book.

About this project
Creators:
  • Esther Barfoot
  • Kasia Horodynska
  • Vreer

July, 2020

Image/graphic

Netherlands, Amsterdam

2658 X 2658 pixels

Creative Commons BY

Download Original/High-Resolution File: 0001.jpg, 0002.jpg, 0003.jpg, 0004.jpg, 0005.jpg, 0006.jpg, 0007.jpg, 0008.jpg



Other Notes:

The project was inspired by the book Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls which shares the stories and work of important women throughout time.

  • Original files can be provided for exhibition

Reflections from Fiona Davey

What skills or perspectives did the collaborators bring to this?

Each collaborator brought different skills from art, design, writing, and organizing.

What would be your next steps, building on this idea, if you had a million dollars and all the time and skills in the world?

If we had a million dollars and all the time in the world we would turn this project into a printed book with entries of all the important figures in access to medicines. We’d also commission portraits for each entry and support artists around the world.