No Vacancy, created by Inkahoots, is a poster campaign for homelessness in Brisbane. It is a form of design activism, which Thorpe details in four basic criteria (2011, p. 6) as evident in the poster.
The poster frames Homelessness in Brisbane as a real and challenging issue, which Thorpe (2011, p. 6) details as the first basic criteria. It then displays the second criteria marker by calling on the public to call on the Government for change by asking “Can we get our Governments to secure this right for ALL citizens?” (Inkahoots, n.d).
Thorpe claims the third criteria of design activism as working on behalf of a neglected, excluded or disadvantaged group (2011, p.6). The poster works on behalf of the some 4324 homeless humans in Brisbane, according to the 2011 Census (Housing and Homelessness, 2017), in which asks “Is housing a fundamental human right or a luxury for the privileged?” (Inkahoots, n.d).
The last criteria outlines that it must disrupt routine practices, or systems of authority, which gives it the characteristic of being unconventional or unorthodox—outside traditional channels of change (Thorpe 2011, p.6) It disrupts the view of Queensland being the Sunshine State, suggesting Brisbane has ‘no heart’ (Inkahoots, n.d).
In conclusion, No Vacancy falls under the design activism banner as it meets Thorpe’s four basic criteria (2011, p. 6).
No Vacancy poster (n.d) <http://inkahoots.com.au/projects/no-vacancy/~i-4>
References
Thorpe, A. (2011). Defining design as activism. Retrieved July 30, 2017 from http://designactivism.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Thorpe-definingdesignactivism.pdf
Housing and Homelessness. (2017, June 29). Retrieved from Brisbane City Council: https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/community-safety/community-support/housing-homelessness
Inkahoots. (n.d) No Vacancy. Retrieved July 30, 2017 from http://inkahoots.com.au/projects/no-vacancy/~details
Images
Inkahoots. (n.d.). No Vacancy poster. [online image]. Retrieved July 30, 2017 from http://inkahoots.com.au/projects/no-vacancy/~i-4
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