Public information · 2022
Shock
and awe.
Jane’s first major public commission: two contrasting families of animal-led posters promoting vaccination and responsible pet ownership in rural communities across northern France.
An unexpected
commission
The project arose from a connection with Jane’s previous career.
A former French public-sector client recommended her newly developed portfolio to government colleagues. Jane’s submission was distinctive because she proposed two different styles of poster, which she called “shock” and “awe”.
The “shock” designs used scale, urgent lettering and direct portraits of animals associated with risk. The “awe” designs were quieter and more sympathetic, using familiar animals and small narrative scenes to encourage responsible ownership without making the public-information message feel remote or bureaucratic.
The resulting campaign could therefore attract attention in more than one register while retaining a shared palette, practical instructions and regional identity. Jane still describes the commission as the moment she realised illustration could become more than a personal passion.