Two thought-provoking, and really quite brilliant adverts about domestic violence have dropped this week, showing just how powerful billboards can be when used creatively.
Firstly, London agency WCRS teamed up with Women’s Aid and Ocean Outdoor to create a digital billboard that uses facial recognition to tell when people are looking at an image of a bruised woman. The more people that look at her face, the faster her bruises and cuts heal, accompanied with the words ‘Look at me. We can stop it’.
Premiering today in Canary Wharf in London, it has already won an Interactive Award at Ocean’s annual Art of Outdoor competition, and has made a lot of people stop in their tracks.
Another equally powerful image is The Salvation Army’s latest billboard campaign to end domestic violence, using The Dress we were all talking about last week. It depicts a bruised woman wearing a white and gold dress and the words, ‘Why is it so hard to see black and blue? The only illusion is if you think it was her choice. One in 6 women are victims of abuse. Stop abuse against women.’
It’s currently only in South Africa but, thanks to the internet, has been going viral around the world. And it’s a good thing it is, considering that recent stats last month from the ONS found that one in three UK women have experienced domestic abuse at some point in their lives – that’s around 4.9 million people in total.
Fingers crossed that campaigns like these serve to raise awareness and get those figures down. Right down.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.