Protest Poster

Artist Statement

The social issue I chose for this project was the debate on anti-fur.  After some research, the main protests and idea that I found were taking the side of human choice, saying that we should chose to not wear fur.  The main posters I found were the popular ones featuring celebrities saying, “I’d rather go naked than wear fur”.  These were all focused on the idea that we, as humans, should stop this killing of animals and choose to not wear fur.  We should choose nudity over a fur coat.

For my project, then, I decided to look at this from another angle, that of the animal’s.  But I did not want to take the normal argument.  I almost wanted to add in some black humor- as if the animal was agreeing with the argument that some people have given.  This fox very sarcastically throwing in his point about this subject.

I wanted his argument to strike really hard.  Even though he is agreeing with what someone might argue, he’s actually using that to show how cruel this is.  These animals are killed only for their fur.  I am not anti hunting and I am not a vegetarian, but I do believe that animals should be treated with respect.  If you are going to kill one, then there should be more purpose than to use their coat as a vanity item.

The reading talks a lot about how what stories you read can influence what you create or do in your own life.  This is true in my protest poster as well. Most of the reasons behind wearing fur are vanity reasons influenced by society.  Because the fur coat has been so idolized as a sign of wealth and fame thanks to movies, books, and other forms of social media, the idea of owning one of these coats or other fur items is romanticized.  And the sad part is, there is no reason for it to be.  Yes, they are expensive, but is the price on the tag really worth the price of a living creature’s life? Or their mother’s?