For my independent project, I chose to recreate three paintings I had done in my color and invention course this semester. I wanted to see what it would be like work on the same idea or concept in two different mediums. The original prompt for the paintings was to create an abstract “sense of place”. We were asked to play around with color composition and scale and layering, which I thought translated well into graphic design. I had a lot of fun adapting these works into illustrator, and am happy with how they turned out!
Plant for the Worst Case ScenarioStop talking, stop planning, and start cookingDonate. Don’t Waste.
Thanks to COVID-19 and the timely response from our government, food insecurity for Americans is no less of a problem now than it was when the grocery stores were fully stocked and the restaurants we not shuttered. In fact, according to the United Nations’ World Food Program, the number of people globally who deal with food insecurity could double this year due to the coronavirus (Farge, 2020). America is no exception; while farmers have had little to no trouble producing fresh produce and dairy this season, much of it is going to waste since the restaurants, cruise ships, and other large enterprises have stopped ordering food (Yaffe-Bellany & Corkery, 2020). Meanwhile, food banks are struggling to provide enough resources for those who suddenly need it, since they have not been equipped to handle a nationwide crisis. The pantries and shelves that would normally serve a fraction of their local populations have been overwhelmed by an increase in demand and a decrease in volunteers. The edible donations they would normally receive from restaurants, hotels, and grocery stores’ overstock are dwindling, and in order to attain enough food to serve their community, many food banks have had to begin buying food items at full price. Feeding America, the largest organization of food banks in the country, estimates that they will need some $1.4 billion in order to meet the needs of their users (Kulish, 2020). On April 17th the USDA announced a new program, the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), which allocates $19 billion to farmers as well as to redistribution efforts; $16 billion goes to farmers and ranchers to ensure that they can continue to produce food even after suffering the loss of most of their sales, and $3 billion will go to regional and local distributors so that the next crop does not go to waste. They hope to transport the food grown to food banks and other non-profits across America (USDA, 2020). As of today, it is too soon to tell how this program will impact the widespread food insecurity that many are experiencing. Prior to its release, Craig Fugate, former director of FEMA, said in an interview, “I think being able to get fresh produce, get meats of variety will go away.” (Cooper, 2020). He, along with many other experts, are sure of one thing: we will not run out of food. Perhaps the implementation of CFAP will help to ensure that we do not miss out on food varieties, either.
In the meantime, while America awaits the results of the $19 billion relief to farmers, crops will need to be replanted since many have been buried and essentially thrown out. Food banks will continue to purchase food they can’t afford, and lines of cars will continue to form outside. Grocery stores will continue to ration the amount of milk and eggs one person can buy. Americans will (hopefully) continue to stay home when possible. Although very different, the pandemic aftermath is beginning to resemble a country at war, a concept that this country is no stranger to. During both World Wars, food shortages became commonplace and Americans were asked to ration their food. One solution to this came in the form of a collective effort, put forth by propaganda and later accepted by the federal government as an economically helpful endeavor: victory gardens. These were gardens that everyday families would make and cultivate all across the country in order to combat the food shortages caused by the wars, and it worked (The Associated Press, 2020). Support for the idea was gathered by distributing posters that depicted beautiful gardens, fresh vegetables, people working in the garden supporting their country, and demanding slogans like “Food will win the war” and “Food is Ammunition – don’t waste it” (Swearingen, 2013). During the current pandemic, many connections have been drawn between the war efforts and the current efforts of essential workers, who risk their lives daily for the good of the population. The concept of victory gardens has resurfaced as well; through social media, new home-gardeners have been promoting their work as a way to prepare for the worst, if the food supply system stumbles, and to share their outlet with friends. Gardening is an excellent way to kill some time. In urban areas, community gardens are working to grow enough to help support food banks and locals who need it. Historian Rose Hayden-Smith explains, “‘We don’t have poster art, but we have Instagram,’” (The Associated Press, 2020). As this movement takes flight, the inspirational messages of the original posters from the early-mid 20th century begin to resemble the messages that Feeding America and World Central Kitchen activists, like Chef José Andrés, have been proclaiming all along. The bottom line is that food is a necessity, daily.
Examples of Victory Garden posters from both WWI and WWII. (Swearingen, 2013)
After researching the impact of victory gardens on America’s hearts and stomachs during the wars, I found them to be an inspiring concept that we could all benefit from. This does not necessarily mean we should all grow a garden; as mentioned previously, America is not running out of food. Certain areas and the organizations that need it most, however, are. Therefore, I think that this country as a whole could benefit from the concept of these gardens by taking their message to heart: support your fellow citizens, don’t waste your food, contribute to the fight against hunger [by donations, by advocacy, by spreading awareness, by volunteering, etc]. Food insecurity is not a new problem, but it has been aggravated by this pandemic, and we’ll need an all-hands-on-deck approach to combat it. It’s comforting to see people already beginning to pitch in on this front, with José Andrés’ inspiring movement World Central Kitchen taking a strong lead, and the USDA’s announcement of new funding for distribution centers. I don’t believe that we can ever stress enough the importance of providing food for communities that need it. Therefore, I would like to bring the art world into this. Designers and illustrators all over the world have been creating posters and graphics that are intended to raise awareness about the coronavirus, from depicting #healthcareheroes, to #stayhome and #washhands infographics. Online submissions to competitions for the best, most uplifting and informative posters continue to flow (Loos, 2020). Instagram is ridden with illustrations of thanks to our nurses, doctors, and grocery workers. I wanted to add to this collection by creating a series of graphic images that brings awareness to the food insecurity that many are facing due to COVID-19, and ways that the average American can help. I drew my inspiration from the original victory garden posters, which were incredibly effective in motivating people in their time, and then modernized the images and messages in subtle ways. The slogans and messages used are adopted from current activists’ rhetoric, and the illustrations represent modernized urban gardens, a home-delivery volunteer, no-waste-tropes, and outreach. On a couple of these posters, a nod to the organizations Feeding America, World Central Kitchen, and Action Against Hunger is given. My hope is that these works inspire people to either contribute to the fight against hunger with small tasks like cooking for their neighbors, volunteering at a food bank, or by raising awareness about the issue thereby contributing to advocacy on the subject. The idea is not new, but it certainly deserves more attention: hunger is not going to wait for us to defeat the pandemic before it continues to take lives.
