When providing documents under the Freedom of Information Act, our security agencies sometimes see fit to strike through confidential information with bold black bars. When those documents are printed online or in magazines, we often spend more time trying to decipher exactly what’s missing rather than using what is provided for context.
Use this visual trope to create a novel promotion for a local nonprofit in your town.
This is a two-person challenge. In 45 minutes, you are both responsible for creating individual advertisements for a woman’s health center. The ad’s headline should read: “It’s a Private Matter.” It should contain at least 200 words of body copy.
For the last 15 minutes of the challenge, swap your ads. You are now required to selectively redact all but ten words from your friend’s ad with a black marker. What will you delete, and how will it influence the meaning of your friend’s ad?
If you want to take it further, incorporate your ad concept into a pamphlet that can be distributed on college campuses.
This challenge was inspired by the work of poet Austin Kleon, author of the poetry collection Newspaper Blackout. Check his book out!
The image above is shared via a Creative Commons Share/Attribution/Noncommercial/No Derivative Works license.