MERA
Engelska: In today’s society, graphic design is often used to encourage consumption through branding and marketing. With this project, I wanted to explore how design can instead be used to reveal and critically examine these mechanisms. By mapping the design and marketing techniques used to drive consumption and trigger desire, and then turning them against themselves, I aim to make this system visible and open up space for reflection on our own consumption habits and the designer’s responsibility within it.
The result is MERA, a sustainability brand that uses the same marketing and design techniques found in everyday advertising to guide the user through a fictional consumption journey. At the end of the experience, the user receives a manifesto explaining each technique, how it is used, and how it affects us. By first allowing the user to experience these techniques and then understand them, the goal is to create awareness and encourage reflection on personal consumption patterns.
Most people already know that we are influenced by marketing and design, yet we are still affected by it. By offering a clearer understanding of these techniques, showing how they are used, and revealing how they shape our behavior, the project aims to make it easier to recognize them in everyday life and make more conscious decisions.