The world has a lot of illnesses. Many of them are just names to most people. A lot of people have heard of multiple sclerosis (MS), but have little understanding of what it entails.
Most symptoms of multiple sclerosis are invisible except to the person living with them. One day they can alter your memory, the next your vision. They strike without warning and leave no trace. They are easily dismissed or ignored by all except those with the disease.
Garth Oriander depicts pain
Grey Melbourne was given the job of changing that. It collaborated with Infinity Squared and Limehouse Creative, and invited top tier photographers to interpret MS in an image. Within a week, the online gallery of photographic interpretations of MS symptoms called Seeing MS has received more than 600 images from over 40 countries.
Matt Hoyle depicts spasticity
Gerry Hanan, a US based fashion photographer who has MS is the most recent contributor to the campaign. His self-portrait for MS is an interpretation of brain fog, one of his main symptoms.
Gerry Hanan depicts brain fog
Originally the Seeing MS app was only intended to be available in Australia, however requests quickly came in from all over the world. The app has now been downloaded in countries including the UK, USA, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, China, Argentina, Norway, Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Greece, Spain and Germany.
Photographers like Sara Orme, Jamie MacFadyen, Andreas Smetana, Matt Hoyle, Toby Burrows, Nicholas Walton-Healey, Juliet Taylor, Garth Oriander, Gerry Hanan and Louis Petruccelli partnered with people living with MS to create visual interpretations of nine of the symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
Photo filters based on each symptom will allow people to see and share how MS affects those living with the disease. The photographs have become the print and outdoor campaign and each individual story is its own television commercial.
Creative credits:
Executive creative director: Michael Knox
Creative team: Laura Petruccelli & Rohan Cooke
Head of broadcast: Sandi Gracin
Digital director: Teresa Truda
Filter development: Limehouse Creative
Designer: Claudia di Martino
Film Production: Infinity Squared
Film director: Aaron McLisky
Film producer: Morgan Taylor
Editor: Dylan Duclos
