Battle of the Billboards

Whether you like them or not, they seem to be everywhere. Outdoor advertisements are a prominent feature in the landscape of most metropolitan cities. Some people are strongly disturbed by corporate ad campaigns, going as far as holding them responsible for fueling the evils of a materialistic consumerist culture. Defenders of the advertisement industry argue that advertisements are artful creations, a means to express cultural values and facilitate consumer decisions by keeping people better informed. Does publicity clutter the airspace and obstruct views of the urban landscape, or have ads earned their position for their ability to shape cultural identity and the power to transmit information?

As of January 1st, 2007 South America’s largest city imposed a ban on outdoor advertising. Mayor Gilberto Kassab established “Lei Cidade Limpa” or Clean City Law out of the necessity to battle pollution: of water, sound, air, and vision. It was estimated that 15,000 billboards, many of which were illegally installed, were crowding Sao Paulo’s streets causing “visual pollution” that impeded views of the city and overwhelmed the public realm with publicity. Weak regulation of advertisement laws made a mess of Sao Paulo’s streets. Billboards, neon signs, video screens, ads on buses, and pamphleteering were made illegal and ordained to be removed. The immediate result was akin to the feeling of decompression after a good spring-cleaning; what remained were empty billboard structures and freshly painted wall surfaces previously reserved for ads.

The outcome was surprisingly positive. Sao Paulo’s streets are now free of cluttered advertisements and polls show a 70% approval rate for this legislation. The city is perceived as cleaner and more serene; the removal of advertisements has opened views of the city and its architecture. Those who opposed the ban, mostly vocalized by the advertising industry, claim that the legislation is unconstitutional because it deprives freedom of speech, costs millions in revenue, and reduces job opportunities.

Back in Los Angeles, a city with image-driven culture, advertisement and publicity is celebrated, not shunned. In February of 2010, Los Angeles unveiled a curatorial art exhibition that highlighted the city’s billboard spaces as an opportunity to have art reach millions. The MAK Center for Art and Architecture sponsored “How Many Billboards? Art in Stead”, casting a selection of contemporary visual artists who designed 21 billboards that were showcased throughout the streets of Los Angeles. The use of billboards as artworks turned the city itself into a museum, a great strategy to bring art into the public view. Although many of the commissioned billboards were abstract and difficult to make sense of, they were at least nice to look at. Where’s the audio guide?

Outdoor publicity has the power to reach millions, but most of the times the message being transmitted is simply “buy me”. Sao Paulo’s ad regulation was severe and imposing, but it brought balance and exposed the city’s more beautiful attributes. It is unlikely that Los Angeles will ever kill the billboards; the city’s car culture and addiction for consumption will maintain the status of advertising space as prime real estate, which translates into massive revenue and tax dollars. If a balance is to be found, perhaps it relies on regulation of advertisement placement and the ability to make publicity that attracts, not annoys.