2013
author
Martyna Bargiel (PL)
title
Corruption Scandals
degree
M.A. project
e-mail
school
Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice
supervisor
Tomasz Bierkowski
The designer’s choice of topic already shows her sophisticated sense of humor. After all, who would see the grotesque world of Polish politics and its tabloid scandals as material for infographics? The assets of the design are clear, however, if we approach it more seriously. The typically extreme reactions to information on corruption, the short‑lived and superficial holy indignation, and the trained indifference, which for many is an essential form of maintaining a healthy distance, in no way contribute to the development of a civic society. Both types of behavior are marked by ignorance, which facilitates the manipulation of facts and the blurring of politicians’ responsibility. Martyna Bargiel presents this media sport in its true light, structuring the data and allowing voters to make a sober appraisal, even giving them a chance to unravel some political games. The detailed descriptions of the events contained in the book are supplemented by separate diagrams showing key events of the scandals and their central figures. Skillfully balancing on the verge of the grotesque, the designer has added crude portraits of these “people without qualities” and prints for T‑shirts borrowed from ironic Internet memes to the serious tools of analysis. One of the most interesting works we have seen, in this edition or in any other.