Designing and Controlling the Vox Populi. Inform, vol. 13 no. 1; 2000

An investigation of the conflicts that result when a city promotes municipal signage but restricts or outlaws the rights of its citizens to create their own signs.

When people design and erect signs that publicize their beliefs, they leave a political record within the city, and transform the site into a place of controversy. Public messages, be they placards, posters, or murals, not only reinforce cultural representation, but ensure a political voice to individuals and communities who might not otherwise be heard. By banning the making and designing of signs, cities effectively censor the vox populi, the potentially contentious ‘voice of the people’ that animates civic life.