Equal = Love re-imagines Minnesota icons to stand as figures for modern equality to create a narrative of the state that is accessible to all, and to take step towards changing the stories we tell ourselves about the state we live in. The posters show a MN that challenges the idea of a state that can exist without equality, showing a state that has already been the home of latent equality.
As a design shop with a history of political and socially minded projects, it was important to address the 2013 gay marriage amendment in the months leading up the historic vote. Given our previous work with the Poster Offensive, an annual political poster show put on by our studio, a poster was the obvious way for us to engage the issue.
The poster was done in the spirit of social justice, and by creating locally printed posters for change in the local legislature, Equal = Love aims to foster an environment of accountability through art.
The “In MN Equal Equals Love” posters are about expanding the meaning of “Minnesota Nice” to be synonymous with “Minnesota LGBT Friendly”. No occupant of Minnesota would take issue with the idea of Minnesota nice, and the “In MN Equal Equals Love” posters happily play with the idea of “MN Nice” as “MN Equal”, in a way that makes social equality just a feature of the states cultural landscape. The aim of the posters is to show a Minnesota not on the cusp of equality, but a Minnesota that has always held equality as a core value.
These posters continue to be sold in shops around the Twin Cities and have been honored as part of the permanent collection of the Minnesota History Center.
