Essay

Throughout this essay I will be discussing the role that Illustration can have during times of social and political uprisings. I will be focusing on how illustrated symbols can have a deep and meaningful impact that can in many ways have the power to change society. Using examples such as the ‘V for Vendetta’ mask designed by illustrator David Lloyd and the iconic portrait of the infamous revolutionist Che Guevara by Jim Fitzpatrick, I will be discussing how these symbols of illustration can effectively create they’re own subculture and act as a beacon of hope to the public during periods of social and political upheavals.

At a first glance, the pale-faced, smirking character of the infamous Guy Fawkes mask portrayed by the revolutionary fictional anarchist ‘V’ on our cinema screens not only acts as a prop on a film set, but has erupted a wave of young left-wing, internet-obsessed hackers known to the public as Anonymous. They’re minimal branding, focusing solely on the mask gives those who feel (socially) powerless a platform to express their anger and dissatisfaction with the worlds current governmental structures. Printed on t-shirts, slapped on lampposts, worn over faces and wired into the very grain of our internet experience, Anonymous shout to the world “We are Anonymous. We are legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us.” They target politicians, worldwide governmental figures, celebrity as a whole and ironically other groups/cults, sometimes religious, most famously they’re ongoing battle with Scientology. Whilst the ‘V for vendetta’ mask is its entire image, a quintessential symbol of the movement, addressing the world from an unknown anonymous source. 

The infamous online organisation known as Anonymous originated from the image board website ‘4Chan’. This website, created in 2003 was a place where people could anonymously upload images,‘gifs’ and memes so that everyone who had an account could see, like and comment. The unique thing about this image board was that there were no rules, no topic and no identity. Images and text with no authorship and control. The individual was not measured. This was where the internet-obsessed formed its alliance and became the globalised hacktivist society we all know and hear about today. Anonymous have caused major problems within the media and some world wide capitalist companies. On April 17-19th 2011 Anonymous caused one of the largest data security breaches in history, they took down the entire sony playstation network that had an estimated cost of 150 million USD. In less than 3 weeks, members of Anonymous made 3.6 million malicious emails, 10 acts of vandalism, 22 bomb threats and 8 death threats to the members of the church of scientology. To some they are seen as terrorists or cyberbullies, Fox news LA says “They call themselves Anonymous, they are just hackers on steroids treating the web like a real life video game’’. But to many people around the world (normal people of the public) they are seen as Liberators/revolutionists fighting for the people with a strong pursuit on ending the governmental corruptions.  

The entire image of Anonymous is solely based around the ‘V for vendetta’ Guy Fawkes mask. Designed by Illustrator David Lloyd in 1988 for his comic book vigilante ‘V’, Later becoming a box-office hit in 2006. The mask itself has been designed around the shape and facial features of Guy Fawkes, but has obviously been stylised in a way that makes the pale and sinister mask almost robotic, this perfectly portrays its purpose and essence of the character and his image. Guy Fawkes as many people know tried to destroy the houses of parliament on November 5th 1604 using barrels of gunpowder. He was caught due to an ‘anonymous’ letter to royalty explaining his plans. He was then listed as a terrorist and was hung. Since the victorian era, children would wear masks in his image on the 5th of November, imitating the story of ‘Bonfire night’s as Fawkes as the villain. However, many people in modern society do not see Fawkes as a terrorist but as a hero and thus the character ‘V’ was born. “Why don't we portray him as a resurrected Guy Fawkes, complete with one of those paper mache masks, in a cape and a conical hat? He'd look really bizarre and it would give Guy Fawkes the image he's deserved all these years. We shouldn't burn the chap every Nov. 5th but celebrate his attempt to blow up Parliament!” This was found in David Lloyds handwritten notes when creating the comic book. Its is quite clear that David Lloyd and many people around the world share this view. “People shouldn't be afraid of their government. Governments should be afraid of their people.” This quote from ‘V’ himself written by Alan more shows that there are people do have the willingness to stand up to higher authorities. The mask itself, being designed around Guy Fawkes is almost a manifestation of these ideas of rebellion and is made into something that is physical and real for the entire wold to see and recognise. The higher the profile of Anonymous, the more the mask is seen and known throughout the world.

The Guy Fawkes mask as a piece of illustration has become much more than what it was originally created for and when designing it, I bet David Lloyd had no idea it would become as popular and meaningful in society as it is today. The mask in effect has created its own subculture and is practically worshiped by many people of our generation. The release of the V for Vendetta movie was the catalyst for this image, because before the film, the mask was unknown outside the world of comic books. The stylised "Guy Fawkes" masks with the pointed moustache and beard, has become increasingly widespread amongst protest groups against politicians, celebrities and financial institutions. The masks conceals the identity and protects the face of individuals that demonstrate a deep commitment to its cause. The hacktivist group Anonymous are to thank for this. The thing that makes the mask so powerful, apart from its simple aesthetics is the fact that it can be easily mass produced and filtered into the public. Therefore anybody can buy it and the mask gains its power not when it is worn by one person, but hundreds or thousands. Anonymous and the mask represent the idea of individualism, but this is ironic because they are all wearing the same mask.  The images and videos of the protest crowds are truly chilling when they are all concealed and connected by wearing the same mask. Anonymous would not be half as powerful or as meaningful if it wasn't for the power of the mask. The mask acts as a symbol or even an entire collective of ideas. It has now become the modern face of revolution, recognised instantly and associated with the ethos and ideologies of Guy Fawkes and the fictional character ‘V’. People may not realise but something as simple as this mask actually can have the power to change society.

Frank Shepard Fairey. The contemporary street artist, graphic designer and illustrator is most famously known for his work during the 2008 U.S presidential election ‘HOPE’ poster. The New Yorker art critic Peter Schjeldahl called the poster "the most efficacious American political illustration since ‘Uncle Sam wants you’”. This piece of illustration has played a very big role in times of political events that have the potential possibilities to change society. The simple illustration of Obamas face using flat bold colours of the american flag captured the eyes and minds of people all across America. It was truly a powerful image. In November 2011 Shepard Fairey revisits his old poster design ‘HOPE’ and modifies it so the V for Vendetta mask is where president Obama’s face initially was. This gave the image of the mask even more power and increased Anonymous’s notoriety as it is clear that many people support their cause. Shepard Fairey named the new version of the poster ‘Final’ as this must be how he sees the relationship between Obama and Anonymous and is also a call out for the president to support the movement of the online hacktivist organisation. Many people would now say that Shepard Fairey has over-done the V for vendetta mask and he has turned it into something generic which has the potential to decrease its essence. When an image has the raw essence that captivate people such as the mask is overused and saturated, people start to loose interest. The subtleness of an image can be just as or if not more powerful than a saturated image.

Another perfect example of how a single piece of illustration can play a huge roll and have powerful effects on the public during times of political upheavals, is none other than the globally iconic Che Guevara portrait by Jim Fitzpatrick, designed in 1968 based on the photograph by Alberto Korda in 1960. This piece of illustration is recognised throughout the world by millions and is almost an emblem of popular ‘Pop’ culture. This image is printed onto a very wide range of material goods, Che’s face is absolutely everywhere. Beers, t-shirts, lighters, wallets and even baby onesies, go to any war protest campaigns or music festivals and people will be wearing the image of Che Guevara in some way. He has become a fashion icon. People who see this image associate it with this idea of revolution and the fight against capitalism. “I am not a liberator, liberators do not exist. The people liberate themselves” “I would rather die standing up than to live life on my knees” These quotes from Che Guevara suggest that he was a man who is willing to fight and die for what he believed in, and this is how he captivated the world. During the time of his revolution, he would have been like a god to the people of Cuba, with his illustrated face as the symbol of hope. In ways this is very similar to the Guy Fawkes mask in which it also has the potential capability to change society and act as a symbol of hope for those who believe in the fighting cause against corruption.

This Image and legacy that Che Guevara and the illustration of his face has left is truly powerful. But this in fact, is an idolised version of his cause. Hollywood and its media have in effect changed the very person he was and turned him into something different. The cult of Che thrives with little to no historical understanding of his life. The truth is Che Guevara could actually be viewed as war mongering, blood thirsty and racist. Che Guevara wrote extensively about the superiority of white Europeans over people of African descent. “The U.S is the great enemy of mankind. Against those hyenas there is no option but extermination. If the nuclear missiles had remained (in Cuba) we would have fired them against the heart of the U.S. including New York City” “The black is indolent and a dreamer; spending his meager wage on frivolity or drink”. These quotes from Che do not suggest that he is any kind of inspirational figure. It sounds similar to words of Kim Jong Un. The democratic dictator of North Korea. Guevara became known as the “Butcher of La Cabana prison” where he personally oversaw the execution of hundreds of people and has implicated in thousands of deaths with reports of Che personally executing prisoners himself by shooting them in the head. But given this true representation of Che Guevara, the people of the capitalist society still seem to worship him. “Im like Che Guevara with bling on” This is a lyric from the famous rapper Jay-Z, even though Che discriminated black people and tried to ban free musical expression such as rock and jazz as he considered it to be ‘imperialist’. So music festivals and war protests who promote the illustrated face of Che Guevara are actually contradicting Che’s entire ethos and belief system of society. Even though Che Guevara’s true identity may be blind to the world, the power of the illustrated portrait still remains. This symbol of illustration has become a beacon for times of social and political distress.

There are many reasons as to why these pieces of illustration have had the power to become much more than a mere image throughout the world. They have evolved into a form of ideas throughout the collective consciousness of society, meaning that these individual images are hardwired into our very brains via each and every persons experience of them. This is another contributing factor as to why they’re as famous as they are. But another reason as to why these single pieces of illustration have such a huge impact is because they are simple and minimalistic by design. The fact that the Che Guevara’s face and the Guy Fawkes mask are simple/uncomplicated designs gives them much more potential to be easily printed onto pieces of clothing, posters and any kind of material object. If these pieces of illustration where highly detailed and over complicated, I'm sure that they would not have the same effect on the world as they do now. Using bold colours made purely from shape, these illustrations are so easily recognisable by the public so each person who sees the shape will instantly recognise it and associate it with all of the social and political connotations that surround the images. Up until now I have seriously underestimated the power of minimal design and how simple symbols of illustration can have great impacts on the world.

In conclusion, I have come to an understanding during the discussion of this essay that symbols of illustration can in fact play huge roles in society during times of political upheavals. Although most people may not even realise it but the iconic, minimalist symbols of illustrations such as the V for vendetta mask and the Che Guevara portrait goes much further than an image that is simply put onto t-shits and posters. They have actively created there very own unique subculture that is heavily supported by millions of people from many regions around the world. These images have now become the face of modern revolution. A simple and effective symbol that people see and immediately associate with political distress. The illustrations have now become a beacon of hope for many individuals who know of the corruption and control that the government enforce on society each day. Those who look upon these symbols are immediately infatuated, this is because they represent more than any person can be. They represent an idea. Ideas cannot be destroyed and they have the power to change society and therefore the world. “Behind this mask there is more than just flesh. Beneath this mask there is an idea... and ideas are bulletproof.” - V.