TAFE SA graphic design student Linda Stanway is among the award winners at this year’s Refugee Week Youth Poster Awards Exhibition.
Linda received a Certificate of Commendation for her poster which shows camaraderie among three young men from different ethnic backgrounds with the tag line ‘Sweet As’.
Another three graphic design students from TAFE SA - Laura Sivewright, Michelle Vega Ramirez and Madison Prest - were finalists in the competition.
The Australian Migrant Resource Centre runs the annual competition as part of SA Refugee Week.
Primary, secondary and tertiary students are encouraged to design a poster that celebrates the themes surrounding the United Nations International Refugee Convention such as multiculturalism, human rights and anti-racism.
Linda says her poster is designed to appeal to a male audience, especially those who have “never really thought much about what a refugee is or only had heard negative things about them through the media and politics”.
While researching stereotypical “blokey” images, Linda found the image of three men who were all clearly different in ethnic background laughing together, which she used as a reference for her design.
“I loved the image as it showed friendship devoid of concerns around whose family came from where,” she says.
Linda has Dutch heritage and says while her family were not refugees, they experienced some of the challenges that come with moving to another country.
“My grandparents were migrants from The Netherlands and although not refugees, it was a huge culture shock to come to Australia after the war with two small children in tow in the middle of summer to be sent to farm in the middle of nowhere,” she says.
“I think the poster competition is a very clever way to engage large sections of the population from primary school to tertiary institutions in thinking about refugees.
“It's a wonderful opportunity for people to learn through art and provides pathways for people to talk about the issues of refugees and displaced people around the world.”
Designs by all finalists feature in the Youth Poster Awards Exhibition which can be seen at the Children’s Artspace, Adelaide Festival Centre, until Saturday, 30 July.