"You can – we do – EU" - design students fly the flag for Europe

(sf) "You can – we do – EU" stands out in red and blue on a white background on posters in the streets and squares of Düsseldorf. The poster created by three budding communication designers, Sön Becker, Felix Demandt and Nadine Matheka, is a call to the elections on 7th June 2009 and flies the flag for Europe. The idea of using the colours of America's national flag and borrowing from US-President Barack Obama's slogan "Yes, we can" was not born of chance. Both subtly reflect the move for change, a motivation and yearning for deep-rooted, enlightened values – although wrapped in a brand new image. One that appeals. And just that was the intention: As part of the "Europa Labora – pro Europe" seminar at the Faculty of Design at Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences, design students under the supervision of Prof. Wilfried Korfmacher developed communication concepts to transmit the European idea with its positive, basic values in a more contemporary form.
After the campaigns had been successfully presented in Brussels, Düsseldorf City Council decided spontaneously to print the draft and post it on the streets of the regional capital. 260 of these posters can be seen in Düsseldorf up until election day. The creative minds are to present the poster to the public at a press conference in front of the City Hall.
"By drawing on Obama's slogan, the poster not only promotes the European elections, but also the electoral relationship in our community of nations. The message crosses party lines, language divides and all national borders. An excellent rallying call for real Euro-patriots", is how Prof. Korfmacher praised the work of his students. "We wanted to find a slogan which is understood intuitively and is easy to remember", says Nadine. All in their mid-twenties, they particularly wanted to encourage first-time voters to help shape the political landscape by participating in the forthcoming elections. "This example of an EU topic made us realise how little we and the people around us really know about the EU and political developments", reflected Sön Becker. The 26-year old, similar to his fellow students, had not realised how stimulating and enduring the intentions and tasks of the EU are until they started their research and extensive deliberations in the project. "Many people just don't understand that the EU is much more than a huge bureaucracy, but that there are ideas behind it, say, that so much diversity comes together", emphasised Felix Demandt.