Eating Disorder Awareness Poster Campaign
THE PROBLEM?
28.8 million Americans have a diagnosed eating disorder- yet collectively we as a society struggle to have productive conversations around this topic. So may people day to day are subjected to this life threatening illness- and yet the only places that seem to be sterile doctors offices or treatment centers. In order to bring awareness and take away shame we must be able to talk about eating disorders in a productive way anywhere.
THE SOLUTION?
A gritty and raw campaign highlighting ways we can change the dialogue around eating disorders.
This campaign features a series of photos of real “normal” people to show how common eating disorders are. In context these photos are showcased on busy city streets, on college campuses, or public transit. In each photo a person is presented trapped behind cellophane. This highlights the way words can cause people to feel trapped and isolated. Above the cellophane is a hand written statement that might have been said to the person behind the cellophane followed by an explanation of why it causes harm.
The design choices I made in this campaign were all very intentional with the goal of creating a specific feeling in the viewer. The cellophane overlay was chosen in response to a popular diet trend when I was a kid- wrapping your entire body in cellophane to lose weight. This emphasizes the feeling of being trapped and also relates to the subject matter. I chose handwritten text in order to make the words feel personal and real.
