Design Museum explores the typo revolting art in the noughties

Margaret Cubbage, the curator of Design Museum’s upcoming exhibition Hope to Nope: Graphics and Politics 2008–2018 to TheCultureTrip notes “I think people are more politically aware and this in part is a result of social media. Not only do the masses have a platform in which to voice their opinion, but politicians use the same platform in which to communicate current affairs” . “You can choose whether or not to tune into this or engage or participate in this dialogue, but largely it is more prevalent within our daily interactions and communications”. 

Per Design Museum “this has been a politically volatile decade. The global financial crash of 2008 and its aftermath have shaken people’s confidence in the prevailing order. The political landscape is increasingly polarised between left- and right-wing agendas, with the reaction against the establishment culminating in the surprise results of the Brexit referendum and the 2016 US election. Other areas of the world have witnessed similar upheavals, with events such as the Arab Spring and the refugee crisis having far-reaching political implications.

Fuelling these events has been an extraordinary proliferation of graphic messages, from political posters and protest placards to internet memes. People are more politically engaged than they have been for years, and the rise of social media has meant that they can disseminate political iconography as never before. Type and image are being used by the marginalised and powerful alike to shape political messages, both reinforcing and undermining authority across the globe.

Hope to Nope will explore the diverse methods that have been used to construct and communicate political messages over the past ten years. As traditional media rubs shoulders with the hash-tag and the meme, never has graphic design been more critical in giving everyone a political voice.

A combination of the rise of social media and the endurance of one of the most politically volatile decades in history has led to huge public engagement with politics since the financial crash of 2008. 

The Design Museum’s forthcoming exhibition, Hope to Nope: Graphics and Politics 2008–2018, explores graphic design’s critical role in providing a political voice for the masses over the last decade, whether it’s grassroots Brexit protest placards to hashtags and memes surrounding Donald Trump’s presidency.

“The ‘Newborn’ typographic monument is one of my personal favourites. It is an example of statecraft, and the birth of a fledgling nation, celebrating Kosovo’s independence from Serbia. A bold and clear statement to the world, that celebrates the independence of a country and is a monument that people can gather around. I also like the fact its appearance changes each year to mark the anniversary” says Cubbage. Discover your own revolting treasures here.