Designing a campaign for Planetary Health

The Planetary Guardians (funded by Virgin Unite/Richard Branson) came to Amplifier to help design a public art campaign for Planetary Health, specifically addressing the need for a Planetary Health Check. I was both the Creative Director, and an artist on this project.

The campaign included elements aimed at convincing people that it was not too late to change their legacy (becoming a Planetary Guardian and creating a better world for everyone). However, we also needed to convey the urgency of the effects on the health of our planet and ourselves, so we went straight for the testicles and placentas. The resulting artwork spread rapidly online due to the graphic depiction of microplastics shown in X-rays of the human body.

As Creative Director for this campaign, I pulled from the archives of my Nat Geo photographer colleagues for split screens, and I also personally designed the visuals for our X-ray street art campaign, which rolled out in bathrooms and on walls across New York City during Climate Week and the UN General Assembly.

More from the viral street art campaign below:
“Tiny particles from degrading plastics are just a small piece of a much larger issue: our environment is saturated with over 85,000 man-made chemicals, most of which have never been fully tested for safety. This includes chemicals in microplastics, which are now infiltrating critical human tissue and blood barriers, entering our brains, hearts, and, according to another study by UNM, every placenta tested. Ouch! Microplastics have been found on Everest, in the Mariana Trench, and your grandma’s bloodstream. It’s too late for my testicles, but it’s not too late to become a Planetary Guardian and help protect the testicles, placentas, and brains of tomorrow! Check out the work of the Planetary Guardians to learn more about the Planetary Health Check and what actions we can take.”