I’ve been keenly watching the Subvertisers International for a little while now. They’ve been connecting different activist groups and individuals together in an attempt to push back against advertising which is ‘invading our public spaces and co-opting our media in an effort to promote the endless consumption of goods, services and brands’. 25 March 2018 was deemed #SubvertTheCity day, with co-ordinated activities happening all across the globe.

Most of these groups are contributing via a ‘take out advertising and replace it with something new’ tactic, with some fantastic results. Closer to home, I spotted this happening here in quiet little Brisbane, with a really fantastic culture jam of an ad for the defence force just down the road from me. There are some alternative actions taking place too — I really liked this example by AdBlock Bristol where advertising spaces were replaced with paper for passers by to contribute to.

My work in this area is also non-destructive, so I thought it would be a good time to contribute this type of intervention. The more I think about the future of augmented reality and what our world might look like in ten years time, the more I think pushing back via this kind of technology will be vital. I spent the day finding some suitable target ads around town and embedding my augmentations, including the one above.