The AIDSGATE poster was designed by the Silence=Death Project in 1987 and was used by ACT UP in their campaigning. This piece of work is relevant because it was a depiction of dissent to the current political agenda of the time that was hindering any positive change to the existing horrible situation that HIV/AIDS patients were experiencing. The poster mainly consists of a portrait of the US president Ronald Reagan with a menacing look in his eyes. The portrait is in black and yellow with a hint of pink in his eyes to match the colour of the word ‘AIDSGATE’ that goes across the portrait in a bold, sans serif typeface. Underneath Reagan there is a block of text saying ‘ This Political Scandal Must Be Investigated! 54% of people with AIDS in
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The black and yellow duotone posterized image of his face makes the poster look a lot more radical and provides a strong tone of voice, since it relates to the print work that was produced in zines by anarchists, feminists and other activists. His face is frozen in mid speech and it resembles a portrayal of a dictator.
The colour pink really stands out in the poster as it contrasts the black and yellow putting an emphasis on Reagan’s eyes and the poster title AIDSGATE. The eyes compliment the already existing negative portrayal of the President, making him look even more vicious and evil. The choice of pink was most likely picked out not only to contrast the other colours, but as it is a colour that is associated with the liberation and empowerment of LGBT people. As mentioned previously it comes from the pink triangle that was used to label homosexual prisoners in Nazi concentration camps.
The AIDSGATE poster perfectly sums up the feelings that the group had towards the US government, as well it deliveres a strong message to the public about the government’s attitude towards people with AIDS in hopes to establish a stronger dialogue with the government itself and to hopefully reduce the general publics ignorance towards the
The black and yellow duotone posterized image of his face makes the poster look a lot more radical and provides a strong tone of voice, since it relates to the print work that was produced in zines by anarchists, feminists and other activists. His face is frozen in mid speech and it resembles a portrayal of a dictator.
The colour pink really stands out in the poster as it contrasts the black and yellow putting an emphasis on Reagan’s eyes and the poster title AIDSGATE. The eyes compliment the already existing negative portrayal of the President, making him look even more vicious and evil. The choice of pink was most likely picked out not only to contrast the other colours, but as it is a colour that is associated with the liberation and empowerment of LGBT people. As mentioned previously it comes from the pink triangle that was used to label homosexual prisoners in Nazi concentration camps.
The AIDSGATE poster perfectly sums up the feelings that the group had towards the US government, as well it deliveres a strong message to the public about the government’s attitude towards people with AIDS in hopes to establish a stronger dialogue with the government itself and to hopefully reduce the general publics ignorance towards the