The Brain and Spine Foundation (B+SF) asked me to design campaign posters and leaflets to publicise their free helpline.
The ‘Brain and Spine helpline’ provides support and information to patients and will translate medical terminology into plain English for them. These posters and leaflets are distributed by hospital staff at the point of diagnosis, or by GPs at a consultation soon after a hospital MRI examination.
After a meeting with the CEO ‘Answers to your many questions’ was the theme we decided on. Inspired by the B+SF charity logotype I set about some image surgery. I combined separate brain and spine MRI scans which I had coloured up in Photoshop with a separately sourced human body silhouette in order to create the main image for the campaign. Scans from healthy volunteers were kindly provided by Guys and St Thomas’ NHS Trust.
For another project B+SF had raised funds to publish a ‘toolkit’ explaining to Educational Psychologists the process of recovery for children who have Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). I designed/artworked the complete toolkit and produced collage illustrations – focussing on some of the things that go on inside a child’s mind.
I arranged profile portrait photos to be taken at a B+SF group weekend gathering for children and teenagers with ABI. In a workshop there the children put down on paper with images and with words the things that interest them. From these ingredients I assembled the various collage items, adding others myself, to create illustrations – a teenage music fan, a computer whizz, a football supporter, a young bookworm, a rocketeer, a deep sea explorer…
Charities need to raise money many different ways. For B+SF I have been involved with several fundraising campaigns. Legacies have always been important to B+SF to help fund its work. The subject requires some sensitivity – no big bold headlines to shout out a message.
Michael Parkinson is a famous interviewer and Patron of the B+SF and the ideal person to pose questions to people who are making a will. And leaflets with a simple Q+A format clearly explain how your donations to the charity will be used and who they will benefit.
Stuart Russell 