What is Graphix4change?

Let’s start with what it is NOT:
• Graphix4change is not a militant organization.
•  It is not a corporate entity, nor is it a non-profit organization. 
•  It is not even a grass-roots web movement.

It is simply the personal website of an opinionated graphic designer and design instructor… me. It is my soapbox to rant, my wallboard to post signs on, my connection to the great experiment called Democracy in America and to a larger extent the experiment of a democratic World Wide Web.

I have never sold advertising on the site, nor is the work funded by anyone other than myself. From time to time I get hired to create works for others (campaign literature, posters, etc.), or even sell images I’ve created privately, but in general I have used the site to post my personal work and made it available worldwide, for free.

Why would I do this? Not because I’m independently wealthy, but as a designer, most of the work I do is for hire for someone else’s message or product, and I wanted a venue to express my own political views that no one seemed to want to pay me for. And since political art only seems to ever find an audience in the art world every four years or so, posting images on-line allows for a 24/7/365 virtual exhibit without needing a physical venue.

I have the great fortune of having viewers, fans and detractors from countries all over the world, something I never could have achieved through my client work alone or by exhibiting solely in Chelsea.

So if you’ve made it through this far, thank you for taking the time to visit my little self-important site. Feel free to download images, contact me with comments and suggestions. And if you are looking to hire a smart-assed designer for your progressive cause, I’d be happy to be paid for what I do.

Enjoy,
Mike
Creator of www.graphix4change.com

Current

Teabaggr IRS

What bothers me in this whole IRS "scandal" is that once you get past the hyperbole of the headlines, it seems the IRS was doing their job: making sure an organization that requests tax-exempt status was not going to use it for political purposes. With the flood of new requests for 501(c)(4) status post Citizens United, you have all these groups with political party names requesting not to pay taxes so that they can influence the election. While many Tea Party groups were asked longer questions and the requests took twice as long as normal, not a single Tea Party request was denied, not to mention once the request is made, the organization can operate as tax-exempt without the actual certificate; they technically just can't advertise as 501(c)(4). Not to mention, if you just listen to these people — they are against the government, the IRS, paying taxes, and of course, the President. So I find it comical that they complained that they were not "fairly treated". Many of these are the same people who think all Arabs/Muslims should be questioned, watched or detained… just because! So it seemed like a time for my "Teabagg' r" characters to make an appearance. Once again, the signs reflect actual slogans or statements made by Tea Party activists. Unfortunately, it seems this fake crisis will not die down anytime soon, so maybe this will become a regular column feature…