With this year’s election inching closer by the day, a common fear is beginning to take shape. Will the American youth neglect to get informed and participate? As college students it’s our responsibility to be aware and involved in the election, and Jacob Tyler Creative Group is passionate about making that happen.
Jacob Tyler, a full service brand communications agency, is hosting “Vote By Design,” a student art competition focused on the upcoming election. They’re asking design students worldwide to create custom posters to encourage America’s youth to participate and spread awareness about the importance of voting. The contest will give aspiring designers the chance of a lifetime including a grand prize of $1000 and a paid summer internship at Jacob Tyler.
Needless to say, the stakes are high.
We spoke with Nicole Fletcher, Marketing Director at Jacob Tyler, about the inspiration behind the contest. “We wanted to devise a fun and creative way for young designers to express themselves. We came up with Vote by Design to encourage young designers to share their opinions and to promote expression during the election,” said Fletcher.
While the election is becoming increasingly tense and bipartisan Fletcher continues, “[We] will see the culmination of Obama's successes and shortcomings in office measured up against a heated and tight Republican candidate race. We think providing the tech savvy generation a means of social expression through graphic design, will create an actionable response and that will in turn raise voting awareness.”
For the contest, Jacob Tyler has lined up an impressive panel of judges including Dick Costolo, CEO of Twitter; Dennis Crowley, CEO & Co-founder of foursquare; Jennifer Van Grove, writer for VentureBeat; Jocelyn Luciano, Executive Director of Summit Int. Awards; Kathleen Ritchie, Managing Director of Creativity Awards; David Carter, CEO of Bright Books; and Les Kollegian CEO of Jacob Tyler Creative Group.
In addition to the paid internship at Jacob Tyler, the Grand Prize Winner will also receive a two-page design spread in a dedicated David Carter E-book. There will be cash awarded to the second and third prize winners along with special recognition for their efforts. Everyone who enters will also receive a free digital copy of the E-book for participating.
There’s just one catch: Posters must be completely nonpartisan. While the current political climate may feel painfully divided, this contest is about making all voices heard regardless of personal beliefs. After all, it’s not all about choosing a side; it’s about encouraging our generation to vote.
So if you’re studying art, design, marketing or advertising and you want to inspire others to voice their opinions, check out http://www.votebydesign.com/, download one of the design templates (PhotoShop, InDesign or Illustrator) and start creating. You can also submit on facebook at www.facebook.com/jacob.tyler.creative.group. Submissions are due April 1, 2012.
