Four + Four Equals Project — In-House International

In-House Int’l was invited to participate in a series of events dealing with mental health issues in Austin, TX. For this project the studio was paired with an individual with lived mental health experience (that is, with Richard Allen White), and tasked collaborate on a poster that invited people to learn more about mental health issues.

The first time we met Richard, he expressed his concern for how this poster would portray him and his experience with mental illness. His concern had to do with portraying people with certain conditions as scary or dangerous. This, he argued, leads to marginalization. And he did not want to be part of something that contributed to that.

Process

Richard was putting a tremendous deal of trust in us to be the bearers of his story. But we realized that it did not have to be this way: we could turn a collaboration that’s structure like a relay race, to a true, all hands on deck creative exercise.

In passing, he shared that he had artwork of his own, or pieces he’d been given by peers or collected. So for our first working meeting, Richard brought these visual materials. They ended up becoming the basis for the poster, down to the selection of the shapes and color palette.

Results

We implemented an aesthetic identity that is a hybrid between independent film and rock festival to capture the attention of pedestrians, and included text with more information on the topic.

The poster was printed in two formats. The first had hundreds of copies that were placed all around the city. The second format was a limited edition large screenprint, for sale to raise funds for causes related to mental health. Richard’s poster sold out.