In the battle with addiction, we stand alone

Client: Rezidenta9

Year: 2024

For the launch of Scena9’s 2024 print issue themed “mistake,” we developed a 5x3m wall print to visualize an article on addiction in Romania. The project aimed to address the scarcity of reliable and up-to-date data on addiction prevalence by combining statistical insights, personal stories, and illustrations into a cohesive and accessible format.

To visualize the scale of addiction, we reimagined Romania as a population of 1,000 people. A background pattern of symbols represented individuals affected by alcohol, gambling, and drug addiction, highlighting demographic characteristics and prevalence levels.

The foreground featured illustrations structured around the five stages of addiction: emotional trigger, craving, ritual, use, and guilt. These illustrations were inspired by interviews with addicts, insights from researchers, and fragments of available statistics. Together, they told a nuanced story that contextualized addiction as both a personal and societal challenge.

A quote from one of the interviews illustrates the depth of the issue: “My mother had problems with alcohol, and I didn’t have a particularly pleasant adolescence in this regard, living with an alcoholic person. I took drugs to cope with the stress that my mother caused me, and she drank to ease the pain of seeing me drink. It was a vicious circle.”

The wall print balanced hard data with human experiences, visualizing not only the prevalence of addiction but also its personal and intergenerational impact. This approach emphasized the emotional and social dimensions of the issue while also highlighting the lack of state intervention.

By combining data visualization, storytelling, and illustration, the project provided a tangible representation of addiction’s scale and complexity, aligning seamlessly with the broader theme of the exhibition.

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