The Center NYC
Art Direction Bob Civil
The vision for this campaign was a protest that was flourishing into a garden full of hope and possibility.
Since 1983, The LGBT Community Center has been supporting, fostering, and celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community of New York City. Every year for Pride Month, The Center invites an artist to create an advertising campaign to showcase the services they offer to New York’s LGBTQ community. In 2018, I was commissioned to create a series of subway ads, bus stop digital ads, shirts, and social media posts to bring awareness to The Center’s LGBTQ Youth Mental Health Services.
Services Illustration, Motion Graphics, Advertising, Social Media Content
The Center’s Legacy
Keith Haring, one of my all-time favorite artists and queer rights advocate, worked with The Center in 1989.
Located inside the second floor of The Center, Keith Haring’s 'Once Upon a Time' Bathroom Mural is a masterpiece of LGBT art. The mural covers four interior walls and surrounds the viewer with Haring’s signature black-on-white line drawings. Queer revolutionaries like Audre Lorde have participated in The Center’s events and are a part of its legacy. That historical weight was one of my inspirations when coming up with this concept.
Details
The blooming protest is filled with flowers, plants, rainbow flags, & messages of encouragement for queer youth that struggle with substance use and mental health.
According to The Trevor Project, 86% of LGBTQ youth said that recent politics have negatively impacted their well-being. 46% of LGBTQ youth report they wanted counseling from a mental health professional but were unable to receive it. The ability to afford care was the strongest barrier to receiving mental health care. These statistics prove how essential mental health programs are. By giving queer youth a place to call home and get counseling services, The Center is an active part of the recovery of LGBT youth in New York. The Center’s substance use treatment program for people ages 13 and up provides support for LGBTQ community members.
Survive. Shine. Resist. — The Center