Beauty for a Better World 2020
“The more beauty and positive energy we can share in the world, the better!” That is the clarion call of Beauty for a Better World 2020, a reboot of an established campaign that encourages the global community to champion uplift and positive change by sharing individual takes on beautiful imagery and the heart-centered emotions they evoke in us. With so much going on in our communities, from the COVID-19 pandemic to police brutality, Beauty for a Better World does not want us to fall victim to hopelessness. Though Beauty for a Better World is not HIV-specific, the HIV/AIDS community knows well how empowerment and a sense of agency can strengthen us.
According to its press materials, the campaign is aligned with another global response for the social good: “With this project we support the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations, in particular goal number 3: Good Health and Well-Being: during the pandemic, half of the world’s population (over 4 billion people!) is said to be suffering from stress, anxiety and/or depression. We hope to help them feel better by showing real beauty that is accessible to all.”
The campaign is a spin-off of a “creative platform for social change” called Beauty Without Irony (beautywithoutirony.com). Started in 2001, the platform responded to a cynical thread running through advertising and fashion images. A central question for artists then became: What does your vision of the world look like if you stop being ironic and treated your feelings with sincerity? The platform bore fruit as an exhibition, a digital platform, and a book, Designers against AIDS: The First Decade.
The Better World Team includes Ninette Murk (creative director BWI), Jens Laugesen (advisor/ editor), Alex Hidalgo (social media manager), Jan Van Mol (Addictlab), Katie Dominy & Alex Brownless (Arts Thread), Carl Navarro (Recess Assembly NYC) and Steve Salter (journalist).
Now that the time has come to repel destructiveness with creativity, and dispel social isolation with community, Beauty for a Better World 2020 is putting a call out to artists and everyone with an artistic sensibility: What does beauty mean to you? The works of beauty will be shared via a curated digital platform. Share your vision in your preferred medium!
To participate and for more information, log on to: https://www.addictlab.com/project/71. If you don’t have much time, please mail your work in low resolution (less than 1 MB) directly to our creative director: [email protected], and include your name, title of the work, year it was created and your website (if applicable). Follow the campaign on Facebook and Instagram.
