Brandalism: Activist Art Redesigns The Advertising LandscapeJohn Galt The Brandalism project has set its sights on the saturated landscape of public-space advertising that is a physical and mental assault on anyone who would like to take a peaceful stroll without being bombarded by misinformation and psy-op strategies. This tradition is indeed growing in popularity and acceptance by citizens, with the UK being a prime site of others who have sought this form of engagement. The following video from Mear One has over 120,000 views and describes the motivation behind the work and the reactions that it engendered throughout the process. As the most heralded and notorious UK street artist Banksy has stated, the governments categorization of this type of activity is likely to be vandalism, but is at the very least a legal gray area. While I certainly dont wish to condone criminal activity, we cant ignore movements that aim to throw a wrench in the gears of tyranny. Anonymous and the hacktivist groups with whom they are aligned, for example, are largely regarded as justified in their attempts to tear down corrupt and dangerous systems wherever they appear it could be seen as an act of self-defense. So, too, activist art like Brandalism with the intention to inform and free rather than dumb down and enslave. It is at its essence a reclamation of public space that has become infiltrated by all of the trappings of fascism. Advertising is in fact one of the key tools of social engineers who wish to promote the images that define society, whether that be the portrayal of body type, financial success, or political/military directives to See something, Say something. As the Brandalism creators rightly point out, the straight advertising of old the type that is embraced by capitalism; highlighting your product with specific reasons why it is better than the competition has morphed into messages directed by the State every bit as much as private interests. And isnt this exactly what we have witnessed during the ensuing years? This clearly demonstrates how advertising is one of the key modern methods of mind control. Combined with other forms of media, there can be a cross-spectrum integrated message which seems to have the ring of truth because it comes from so many sources, simultaneously. When one becomes attuned to identifying the main message, one can certainly see the prevalence in public ad space. And this is not even to mention subliminal messaging. However, it is all very difficult to ignore unless you have intensely trained to identify how it is done. Most arent so fortunate, and certainly children are most susceptible. Perhaps such an insidious form of mind control needs to be met with subversion? You can find out more at www.brandalism.org.uk. If you are persuaded and would like to become involved, they provide resources and support by contacting them at brandalism@riseup.net. Recently by John Galt: 