Has the country become kinder?

With the world being pretty glum over the past year, there seems to be an influx of positivity at our fingertips. From social media to billboards, there are messages of positivity almost everywhere.

1. #LondonLockdownLove

Buchanan studio took to the streets of London before Christmas with stencils and a jet wash to clean graffiti notes of optimism and togetherness across the capital. The clean graffiti spread little notes of joy to Londoners during the winter and appeared across social media by those few London commuters.

 

2. Feel Good Club

Wife and wife team own and run Feel Good Club, a well being coffee house. Channelling wellbeing and positive vibes in a calming environment surrounded by mental health first aid trained staff. They also have a large Instagram following, where they post mental health advice, positivity and support.

They launched a city wide campaign earlier in the year, working together with Jack Arts to create billboards and posters of supportive messages.

Co-Founder of Feel Good Club, Kiera Lawlor-Skillen added: “Feel Good Club is all about spreading positivity and making sure that people know they aren’t alone in how they feel, whether that’s a good day or a bad day, so on blue Monday it was more important than ever for us to do something that could possibly bring a smile to someone’s face.”

 

3. Community Is Kindness

‘Community is kindness’ billboards appeared around Loughborough Junction in Brixton, created by out-of-home agency Jack Arts. The campaign was put out as a positive gesture by the team and appeared across 10 cities in the UK and then picked up in the media before landing across the world in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and USA. The posters were also made downloadable to print at home and put in windows to keep spirits high.

 

4. Posters For The People

During the UK’s first lockdown, Leeds based street art, In Good Company launched their campaign, ‘Posters for the People’. Spreading positivity and show support to all the keyworkers.

“Graphic design is key amidst a crisis – it’s a powerful tool in communication and we wanted to create a campaign that keeps peoples spirits high. Empathy and support for others, in any way, is necessary. As artists and designers, we thrive in creativity, and there’s no bigger opportunity to be creative than in a crisis.”

With posters and billboards popping up around the city from Morag Myerscough to Anthony Burrill, over the 3 UK lockdown’s the posters have spread across the country from Edinburgh to Bristol.

Posters for the people works in collaboration with Frontline19, providing free psychological support for the key-workers of the pandemic. The posters are available in the banner and print shop with all money raised going to the charity.

 

The past 12 months have been pretty dreary but something back in March sparked a surge of creativity. Rainbows appeared in windows and doors across the country, soon followed by happier social media feeds with supportive emotional typographic quotes to the larger campaigns and big brands giving back to the key workers. Not only has graphic design been a vital tool for communication during a worldwide pandemic, it has also bought us small moments of fun and joy.