Brandalism activists take over Paris ad space for UN climate change summit

Brandalism, the UK anti-advertising movement, has installed more than 600 fake ads around the streets of Paris blasting corporate sponsorship of the United Nations summit for climate change.

 

The unauthorized ads first appeared this past weekend. Brandalism has claimed responsibility for the ads on its website, saying the group decided to take the guerilla advertising route after the French government banned all public gatherings in response to the terrorist attacks on Nov. 13.

 

The ads were placed in outdoor spaces owned by JCDecaux. Prominent sponsors of the summit include Air France, GDF Suez-Engie and Dow Chemicals. Heads of state are also parodied, such as Francois Hollande, Barack Obama and David Cameron.

 

The artworks were created by over 80 artists from 19 countries, including many of the artists featured at Banksy's Dismaland exhibition this summer. The works highlight "the links between advertising, consumerism, fossil fuel dependency and climate change," the group said.

 

"By sponsoring the climate talks, major polluters such as Air France and GDF-Suez-Engie can promote themselves as part of the solution, when actually they are part of the problem," a Brandalism spokesman said. "We are taking their spaces back because we want to challenge the role advertising plays in promoting unsustainable consumerism."

 

(This article first appeared on CampaignLive.co.uk)