For their final year project, second year BA Graphic Design students presented Nation 283, an event focusing on the intersection of politics and graphic design. They invited the public to take part in workshops, talks and activities held in Peckham’s Bussey Building. Here, Senior Lecturer Robert Sollis and Graphic Design student Imogen Walker share images from the events of the weekend and an introduction to the ideas behind the project.
Rob: “The students were exploring new political ideas around how society, finance and education should be organised. They felt that their ideas were too radical to be believable within the current political climate, so they felt that they had to propose an alternative. An alternative nation.
They called the show Nation 283 and declared the site of the show the 283rd independent state. The number 283 came from adding up all of the ‘officially’ recognised countries, some semi-official ones and the desire to recognise a whole load of micronations similar to Nation 283. You got a passport and Nation 283 citizenship as you entered.”
Imogen: “At a time when the United Kingdom is turning inwards and a resurgence of nationalism has emerged across the country, Nation 283 sets out to critique the idea of the nation state and calls for new political alternatives.”
“Set up on cooperative principles, Nation 283 offers new ways of teaching and learning, buying and selling, making and sharing. With its roots in visual communication, Nation 283 challenges us to think about design in relation to twenty-first century ideas around work, collectivity and social purpose.”
NEWSAGENTS
Publication on cultural equality by Tasha Brune-Goodey and Ava Braddock
Posters by Hannah Johnson
Posters by Cameron Wilson, Mike Raymond and Tom Darlington
Magazine by Katherine Marriott
Work by Micol Galli and Keno Zhang
A playful approach to the subject of using student fees more efficiently by Josh Conway
Publication exploring the unreported voice of the youth by Alex Colehan
Publication encouraging the public to take hold of the power of humour in the world of politics by Mike Raymond and Tom Darlington
BANKS
Prints depicting offshore money laundering in the Isle of Man by Imogen Walker
PHARMACY
Publication and posters by Isobel Jarvis
BAR
Pasta bar designed to get people talking about politics in an open and compassionate way by Josh Attwood
HOME
Quilt and publication about encouraging people to vote by Toby Dexter.
Video exploring the legitimacy of news and the media by Tash Langridge-Smith
CINEMA
Video displaying top Googled questions after the EU referendum by Shawn Sawyers
Moving image experimenting with subliminal messages reflecting the overload of information the media presents during the run up to the 2017 election by Jordan Weaver
Propaganda video regarding Brexit by Amrita Bisla and Adam Williams
SCHOOLS TALKS
Talk by David Cross
SCHOOLS WORKSHOPS
RELATED LINKS
BA Graphic Design