Just ahead of the COP21 Climate Conference, an organisation called Brandalism has hijacked over 600 outdoor ad spaces in Paris, but with a more ‘realistic’ and honest twist.
The organisation has replaced the ad spaces with climate change-related art brands like Total, Air France, Dow Chemicals, GDF Suez and Volkswagen.
All the targeted brands are corporate sponsors of COP21, with the art also appearing in ad space owned by outdoor ad firm JC Decaux, itself an official sponsor.
The #ClimateGames hashtag refers to what Brandalism calls “the world’s largest disobedient adventure game.” The ads also call for protesting of the Solutions 21 conference, a corporate expo at Paris’ Grand Palais during the COP21, while the hashtag #redlines refers to the minimum changes necessary for a just and inhabitable planet.
“By sponsoring the climate talks, major polluters such as Air France and GDF-Suez-Engie can promote themselves as part of the solution—when actually they are part of the problem,” Joe Elan of Brandalism said, per AdWeek reports.
“We are taking their spaces back because we want to challenge the role advertising plays in promoting unsustainable consumerism,” one of 80 participating artist said.
“Because the advertising industry force feeds our desires for products created from fossil fuels, they are intimately connected to causing climate change. As is the case with the climate talks and their corporate sponsored events, outdoor advertising ensures that those with the most amount of money are able to ensure that their voices get heard above all else.”
You can see the ads for yourself here:
