Rebeca Méndez uses her ‘superpower’ of design to encourage women to vote
Méndez created a poster for the League of Women Voters and the American Institute of Graphic Arts
Méndez is an artist, designer, and professor at UCLA, Design Media Arts, where she is director of the CounterForce Lab, a research and fieldwork studio. Her research and practice investigates design and media art in public space, critical approaches to public identities and landscape, and artistic projects based on field investigation methods.
"Rebeca Méndez is an artist, designer, professor of design media arts and director of the CounterForce lab at UCLA. She’s also an activist who frequently advocates for a sustainable future, and in this presidential election year she’s had her sights set on the November election. As part of the League of Women Voters’ and the American Institute of Graphic Arts’ effort to empower the women’s vote, Méndez created an art poster called, “There is More Space For Change And Growth.”
During this moment, I feel that we still need to be emancipated. There are still freedoms that need to be protected. There are still laws that need to be revised. There are more people that need to be included. There are more things to achieve. There is more space for change and growth. –Daina Ramey Berry, professor of history, University of Texas at Austin UCLA Newsroom spoke with Méndez about this work, the superpower of design and how we might begin to move forward from the divisiveness of the past few years.
How does your design for the AIGA poster contribute to focusing everyone’s voice and attention on voting?
For me, it feels like we are finally accepting that no, we are not all free. There are injustices being done to women and the female, the physical feminine body, still continues to be affected by colonialism. It is in this body that I feel the constant fight for a full sense of agency.
I have the image of a torso, which is vulnerable and strong. It is in that body where I hold all the wounds of the injustices that are done to women and I am also fully present with great agency to be able to be transformed. I have transformability, and therefore I will never stay quiet. I will continue to fight for myself, for all women. This work focuses on that specific moment of, yes, I understand my reality, but no, you will never keep me quiet, you will never stop me from transforming." — Max Gordy, Oct. 21, 2020
This post is an excerpt. Read the full article on the UCLA Newsroom website.
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