THE DESIRE

Amplifier founder Aaron Huey called me days after the 2016 American presidential election, wanting to leverage his network of artists and activists to create a widespread message of hope & unity during divisive times. He needed help creating a crowdfunding campaign & video to distribute the commissioned art.

THE CREATION

Amplifier partnered with artists Shepard Fairey, Ernesto Yerena, and Jessica Sabogal to create a series of images reminding Americans of our shared humanity, then we pasted them across the nation. I built out a small team to create all assets for the crowdfunding campaign that both paid for and distributed the art. We The People became the most successful art campaign in Kickstarter history, raising $1.365 million from over 22k backers in just 8 days. We ran the images as full-page ads in the Washington Post, the New York Times, and USA Today, & distributed 30K placards at Women’s March events worldwide. Close to 700,000 people downloaded the prints for free in 193 countries, resulting in myriad creative reproductions, including murals, tee-shirts, dresses, tattoos—even a flag on the summit of Mount Everest. When Amplifier needed someone to run the Kickstarter campaign due to a last minute staff shortage, I took on the role, carrying it through printing of the art, documenting its distribution at Women’s marches across the country, managing PR, facilitating distribution, and setting up Amplifier to complete their Kickstarter rewards fulfillment.

COLLABORATORS

AMPLIFIER FOUNDATION | WOMEN’S MARCH | OBEY GIANT | Aaron Huey Producer + Visionary + Creative Director | Eric Becker + Cinematography | Max Basch + Cinematography | Mike Lawrence + Cinematography | Melinda James + Cinematography | Adrien Oneiga + Cinematography | Lenny Mesina + Cinematography | Aly Nicklas + Cinematography | Michael Lawrence + Cinematography | Erik Becker + Cinematography | Theresa Ortolani + Cinematography | Kristian Borysevicz + Cinematography | Alex King + Cinematography | Abbey Smith + Producer (Los Angeles) | Stephanie Sizemore + Art Director | Delphine Diallo + Photographer | Ridwan Adhami + Photographer | Arlene Mejorado + Photographer | Ayse Gursoz + Photographer | Shepard Fairey + Artist | Ernesto Yerena + Artist | Jessica Sabogal + Artist