Here we are in the middle of a raucous 2017 and the next version of the Power to the Poster project has just launched. We took the most powerful, most compelling posters created since Election 2016, according to us, and built a website around them. Graphic design in its purest form, the poster, on display for the Resistance Age.

Graphic design that says women’s rights will not be compromised. Immigrant rights will not be compromised. The rights of the poor will not be compromised. Environmental rights will not be compromised. Graphic design that says lies will not be tolerated. Authoritarianism will not be tolerated. Fear and hatred will not be tolerated. Taking rights away from people will not be tolerated. And so on.

Since that fateful day of November 8, 2016, graphic design and visual art have been doing some amazing things. What we’re mostly concerned about here are posters and the power they wield. We’ve seen some powerful, inspiring, surprising, moving, and thought-provoking work that aligns with the movement of the progressive Left to draw a line in the sand and fight like hell to hold it. Some of that work can now be found online in one easy-to-access place.

What we’ve come across in the last few months has been pulled together into a curated collection of what we think graphic design can be when at its best. In various shapes, sizes, styles, and tones. No need for Hitler reference points or what we consider to be bad design. Instead, we stick to our curatorial vision for both aesthetics and mission.

What’s shown on the site is what’s most moving and relevant to us in this fractured time. Much fuller collections of posters are already being organized by Just Seeds, The Amplifier Foundation, and Mut Zur Wut. To engage with them would be a wise thing to do. Bookmark, follow, and return on a regular basis.

Power to the Poster existed in an earlier version from 2008 to 2010. Roughly. It was a more focused project that lived on its own island on the Web. This time we wanted to pull many islands together. We’ve been sharing these posters on social media as we find them, but that just feels so fleeting. Perhaps this site can have a little more permanence. As much as the Internet has changed in the last 9 years, we feel the project has evolved and feels relevant for what it’s like to be online today.

Aside from the digital, we must rally, march, and protest. We must mobilize and organize. We must bring it in and bear it out, this reality that we want. A reality that should be realized because it’s what we see as the only way forward. Art, design, music, film, and any other creative endeavor plays a role in this. To inspire, to speak truth to power, to stand up to authoritarianism. To be the thing that spurs us to start, or keeps us going.

Graphic design, as it’s understood in its modern form, has done this for decades. To mobilize a war effort, to stand up against a war effort, to raise awareness of the hidden threats to our liberty, to shine a light on what our liberty even means. All of it and then some.

We hope Power to the Poster: Resistance Age can be yet another thing that inspires people to stand up and moves them to action. If you want to participate in some way, contact us via email.

Otherwise, share the site with your networks. Tell your friends in real life. And, of course, follow us on Instagram.

Into the long fight, carry on.

Power to the Poster V2 was designed by Justin Kemerling and developed by Cody Peterson. Version 1 was created by Justin and Jason Hardy. Both versions showcase work by numerous designers using their talents to speak truth to power.