don't be afrAIDS

So, this is the product of the Jean-Benoit Levy Workshop. It ended today and in some ways it's a relief, but in most ways it isn't. This was the most fun I've had with design in the past year. Everything had to be turned around so quickly that there was no room for typical painstaking process. The idea happened, and we executed it, and that was it. JBL misinterpreted our concept from the beginning, but we just went with it.

The entire workshop was devoted to a competition in the Ukraine called AntiAIDS Ukraine. We had to put together a poster and animation in 4 days centered around a positive AIDS campaign. The idea is that the ducks are friends regardless of whether or not one has HIV/AIDS.

I am hoping that the structure of this workshop will find its way into my process this semester. I will leave you with a few important JBL comments:

On the initial stages of our process (thumbnails):
"It's not about drawing, it's about putting a concept on paper."

On the AntiAIDS Ukraine contest:
"You don't work for a jury, you work for yourself."

On experimentation:
"You think you don't want to...But, you might, if you tried."
"You don't know what you're looking for"

"Sometimes you have to force things, this is how life works."

"Often the computer distorts your creativity."

and one of my favorites, in response to the question, "What is your favorite color?":
"it depends on the color next to it."
{hands down, best answer I've ever heard to this question. And it definitely wasn't rehearsed.}