BBCx365 by Johnny Selman: Getting the news from graphics...

Bahrain putting doctors on trial

Israel bombing Gaza

Egyptian revolution

Phillip Morris suing australian government over blank wrappers

Syrian revolution

Israeli Turkish dimplomatic problem

BuShehr nucrlear reaction

All posters: Johnny Selman

William Carlos Williams said "It is difficult/To get the news from poems/Yet men die miserably every day/For lack of what is found there" - and this could easily sum up Johnny Selman's incredible BBCx365 project which was his thesis for a master's degree, the idea was that Americans so misinformed about events worldwide, that if one gave them the news in a graphic form they might be more enticed to take interest, or as one poster said in Georgetown Washington, "Information is only as good as it looks" - and by God it looks good. The project which finished on September 7, 2011 in a bonanza art event in San Francisco earned Selman his MFA.

Selman put himself a series of guidelines and rules for the project:

"Use as few elements as possible. Reduce the story to its simplest visual form. Don’t overthink it. Don’t overwork it. Use as few colors as possible. Use flat color. Use color as a representative element. Don’t use gradients. Use typography as the central visual element whenever possible. Use Gotham Bold or your hand. When needed use Tungsten Bold as a condensed face. Other typefaces can be used sparingly for parody. Use bitmap and vector graphics. Rip the levels out of photographs. Keep it interesting. Use humor. Use parody. Use satire. Use visual puns. Stay neutral. Be bold. Don’t be afraid."

Oddly, this project reminds me of another take on the news, this time from celebrated art duo Gilbert and George taken from their London Pictures series, below is a sample of what I am thinking of:

Image: White Cube gallery

And so with this, I hope it's enough news for you for the day. If not, check out my own "Getting the news from poems" dating back to 2009.



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