nothing: between voluntary indecision, hollow language, and the power of form

Context

This project is part of the continuity of my thesis on the political uses of stickers in public space. This research has highlighted the different visual communication strategies employed by activist groups, notably through processes of ambiguity or ideological concealment (dog whistling). These processes allow for the dissemination of extreme ideas while appearing acceptable to the general public. All these mechanisms contribute to broadening or shifting the Overton window. Alongside these observations, a graphic analysis on visual effectiveness and the role of stickers in the communication of a group or a political party has been conducted. It is from these observations that the idea of designing the visual identity of a fictional political group emerged, whose absurd claims and communication strategies are directly inspired by the logics observed in the real activist field. This graphic project thus proposes a critical form of the graphic and rhetorical mechanisms studied in the thesis, subverting them to better reveal their implications. Furthermore, this project proposes a reflection on political neutrality, which can be considered as a stance of a privileged person.

Problematic

Political movements play on ambiguities and the appropriation of symbols in order to normalize controversial ideas.

Concept

Create a fictional political group and its communication via stickers. The cause defended by this group should be fictional, even absurd. The goal is for the communication of this fictional group to be a critique of real groups that play on ambiguities to normalize extreme ideas.

Finding a fight.

A solution could be to find a name that is close to concepts related to the issues addressed in the thesis, such as dog whistling or the manipulation of the Overton window.

Ideological positioning

The group RIEN does not claim any explicit cause. They communicate strong values without taking any concrete position. It is a group that seeks to produce adherence without content. Each individual fills the void of their discourse with their own beliefs.