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Brandalism Answers in Its Own Way to COP21 Climate Conference

This year, for the first time in over 20 years of UN negotiations, COP21, also known as the 2015 Paris Climate Conference, will aim to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on climate, with the aim of keeping global warming below 2°C.
Anti VW ad 6 photos
Photo: Brandalism
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These ads were placed this weekend in advertising spaces owned by JC Decaux, one of the world’s largest advertising companies and also one of COP21’s official sponsors.

Some major companies like Volkswagen, Air France, GDF Suez-Engie, Total, Dow Chemicals, and even head of states such as Barack Obama, Angela Merkel, David Cameron, Francois Hollande or Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abi, were targeted in these ads that are quite similar to the originals and were made by more than 80 artists from 19 countries, as part of yet another Brandalism anti-advertising takeover.

According to Brandalism officials, the ads critique the corporate takeover of this very important conference while exposing the links between advertising, consumerism, fossil fuel dependency and climate change, a problem that is more and more important nowadays. The same officials have said that these companies are major polluters and they are nothing more than a part of the problem.

One of the most iconic ads is that in which the American President Obama is portrayed while swimming with one of his daughters and oil burns in the background. The ad states that lubricants producing company Mobil knew about the impact of fossil fuels but preferred to deny it.

Other ads worth mentioning are the ones in which German carmaker Volkswagen is being targeted because of Dieselgate, the biggest scandal in the company’s recent history caused by the fact that it lied about its cars’ real emissions.

Brandalism started back in 2012 and describes itself as a revolt against corporate control of the visual realm. In 2014, the company reclaimed over 360 advertising spaces with handmade art created by more than 40 artists from around the world.
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