Decorating My Scooter Panels
Let's talk arts and crafts! Extra time being at home during the shelter-in-place periods of the pandemic gave me the time to work on some projects that had been on my to-do list for years—one of these projects combined two of my favorite things: crafting and advocacy.
My idea was to customize my Pride Go-Go mobility scooter into a rolling billboard that visually expresses different advocacy and social justice themes. I had collected a whole folder full of images, graphic elements from previous projects, stickers, etc. Once I sat down to get started, I realized that I would have enough artwork for four sets of panels. Every scooter comes with multiple pairs of removable plastic panels, typically red and blue. They can pop off if one gets damaged (hello airlines, I'm talking to you) or if you want to change up the color for variety. I've always kept the extra panels.
I've decoupaged a few times before, so I thought that would be the most effective, albeit messy, method to use. Decoupaging is the process of gluing pieces of paper, tissue, or other materials to glass, plastic, or wood. Then as the last step, I knew I would want to seal the decoupaged panels with a clear acrylic sealer to help protect them.
As you can see from the photos, all in all, I think the project turned out pretty great! It took a lot longer than I thought it would, which is why I had probably procrastinated on doing it for so long.
I love making collages. I always have. It is a form of creative expression that I first explored way back in my grade-school days when I would decorate my high school 3-ring binders and insides of my hall lockers. There is something special about taking bits and pieces of one thing, magazine clippings, clip art, etc. and putting them together to make something completely new. A unique piece of art that visually reflects something I want to express.
Additionally, as a graphic designer, I enjoy playing with shapes, colors, fonts, and images. Sometimes I like to think of it as putting together a fun jigsaw puzzle. Even a mistake can turn into a "happy accident."
Perhaps more than all the artistic aspect of this particular project is that I like being out in the world and making a statement about issues and causes that I am passionate about, without having to say a word. I just let my scooter say it for me.
