Using Illustration to Ignite Activism with Kika MacFarlane
In this episode, Marc and Sarah sit down and have a delightful chat with illustrator and outdoor enthusiast Kika MacFarlane.
Kika makes lovely illustrations, often about oceans, forests, and mountains. She recently had her eyes opened to the potential of art as activism when one of her illustrations went viral on social media.
Since then she’s been collaborating with intersectional environmentalist founder Leah Thomas, among others, and her art has taken on a more activist tone, with messages like “Sustainability is an act of justice” and during the latest election season “Vote for oceans,” “Vote for forests.”
Get cozy and listen in as we discuss what goes through an artist’s mind when creating illustrations she hopes will ignite activism.
Links mentioned in this episode:
follow @kikamack on Instagram
Kika’s Toxic Gear Culture post
Kika’s profile on Climate Designers
CatchAFire — skills-based volunteer matching
Transcript:
Sarah: [00:00:29] In this episode, Mark and I sit down and have a delightful chat with illustrator and outdoor enthusiast. Kika MacFarlane. Kika makes lovely illustrations often about oceans, forests, and mountains. She recently had her eyes opened to the potential of art as activism. When one of her illustrations went viral on social media. Since then she's been collaborating with intersectional environmentalist founder, Leah Thomas, among others. And her art has taken on a more activist tone. With messages like sustainability is an act of justice. And during the latest election season, vote for oceans, vote for forests. Our chat with Kika is coming up right after this brief message.
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Sarah: Hey, real quick. We want to tell you about the climate designers party program. This is a new kind of event because we are done with boring sustainability conferences or those business and design conferences with just one sustainability breakout session.
We're creating a two-week party centered around climate and focused 100% on a creative audience.
Marc: [00:01:32] Yeah, think 24 hour global kickoff events, design showcases networking opportunities and some live music and comedy performances. We're going to cover various topics, such as systems thinking, circular design, behavior, change, climate communications and environmental justice. So this is all happening March 1st through the 12th, 2021. So go ahead and check out ClimateDesigners.org/PartyProgram for more information.
Sarah: [00:01:58] let's party.
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Sarah: We are here with our latest guest Really excited to talk to you today.
Marc: [00:02:07] Yeah. Excited to introduce Kika McFarlane. She's a designer, illustrator, and all things creative. she's in, I believe Jackson hole Wyoming. Is that correct? Kika.
Kika: [00:02:18] Yes. It is .
Sarah: [00:02:19] We're so excited to chat with you.
Marc: [00:02:21] Yeah. Thanks for taking the time. we are super stoked to have you on, just a little bit of background, climate designers. We have an Instagram account, which we're actually just reached over a thousand followers. So thank you for all of those who are following us.
and Kiko, I think we discovered you on our Instagram feed. it was your post that you. that you shared, I think right before you went on a backpacking trip and you talked about how the outdoor space, ha is, is more or less, geared more towards. you know, it doesn't really, it's not really inclusive when it comes to people of color.
do you remember that post? Do you, can you explain a little more?
Kika: [00:02:59] Yeah, absolutely. that post I made was specifically talking about, toxic gear culture and I think we have all seen the ways, that the outdoor industry is predominantly white and wealthy, and very homogenous in that sense, but it was a personal realization that I had been one of the problems within that. And one of the ways that it is perpetuated is in our obsession with gear and I love outdoor activities. I spend a lot of time doing it and I work in the outdoor industry. So I would definitely consider myself a gearhead and have always had this kind of love for outdoor gear. And, you know, everyone has certain brands that they like, and it really is an obsession, within people who participate in these sports, these outdoor sports.
And I realized that that was a huge barrier for anyone trying to get into the outdoor world. Just to have the right gear, but also this culture that we had built around it that really prioritized brand names and shamed people for the brands that they were wearing or the clothes that they were wearing outside.
And these things that ultimately didn't matter and were kind of small things were, holding people back from being able to participate in entry-level sports. So it was definitely about inclusivity in the outdoors overall, but more about the specific issue within it that I had noticed, in my own life and, and things that I was doing in myself.
And, yeah.
Marc: [00:04:14] Yeah. And so just to tell people a little bit more of that particular story, you posted that right before your backpacking trip, and then you came back and apparently it blew up and you didn't really expect it to blow up as much as it did. I think you got a couple thousand likes and a ton of comments, right?
Kika: [00:04:31] Yeah, I think it was shared about 50,000 times had 10,000 likes, really made the rounds and really started this massive conversation, within people about, about the small things within the outdoors that make it hard for it to be inclusive for different groups.
Marc: [00:04:45] Great. Great. And so yeah, with that, I was like, Whoa, this, this person's bad-ass she just like called out a whole industry.
Right. And so, and so, you know, we look more into your work and, and, loved what you were doing. and so yeah, we basically just reached out and said, Hey, you should become a climate designer, you know, be featured on the website. And, and then eventually, we, We reached out to you for this podcast.
so I want to dive into speaking of your featured profile, in your description, you state that you want to quote unquote, utilize illustration to ignite activism. I would love for you to go a bit more into that. And, and specifically, what does that look like for you and how do you want people to respond to that?
Kika: [00:05:26] Yeah, that, that's a great question and segues really well. after talking about the toxic gear culture posts that I made. so I've come to realize recently through social media, how powerful digital illustration specifically is in igniting activism and eliciting a response from people. and I think the toxic gear culture post was the first time that I had really seen that happen to me or from something that I had created. But if you look at the past recent months in all these different realms of activism on social media, we really have seen this surge of digital illustrations being used as this tool to share information, really rapidly to spread a message.
And they're really visually beautiful. They're easy to digest and, there's just been this massive wave of them appearing on the internet. And that's something that I've started to focus my work on a lot, because I've realized that it is a really unique tool not only in sharing information and making things digestible and easy to share, but also in something a little bit more than that, you know, social media is so personal to everyone and, and what it comes down to is almost our identities, you know, we're on these websites, shaping who we are as people and the things that we post and the things that we share.
And I I've started to realize that, you know, people sharing a post about cutting back on plastic. Sure to a certain extent it's to tell their followers, Hey, plastic is bad. And here's why, but it's also, it's, it's also waving this flag of like, I am trying to cut back on plastic. This is who I am as a person.
And so it comes back to this like identity and to showing people that they care, which I think is pretty cool and unique. And there has been a lot of pushback, I think from people calling it this new wave of Instagram activism, you know, all these people are just out here, like sharing these photos. These were like viral digital illustrations.
And what does that really doing? And I think that that is important to think about to a certain extent, because it is important to do more than just share something it's important to. You know, go out there and protest and to write letters for whatever it is that the cause is. But I think that people often overlook what's happening on a large scale, you know, when we are sharing these digital illustrations, we are shaping our identity overall, and we're changing who we are as people and what we care about.
And I think that that is really, really powerful.
Sarah: [00:07:37] Yeah, that's hugely powerful stuff. I love it. And I have to admit, I am really inspired by what you're putting out there. And I'd love to chat with you. as an illustrator, as a designer, a little bit about your process, you know, like just thinking about anyone who's inspired to do this sort of digital activism, even though people poopoo it. you know, it's one of the few things that we feel like we can do when we're all in lockdown and aren't really out marching in the streets that much. And, You know, like if we live in a small town, we can't get out to the protest or we want to be able to do something.
We can at least post it on our social media and the way that you do it, it's really beautiful. If somebody scrolls through your Instagram feed. at Kika Mack, M a C K. you'll see, you know, you have a lot of similar color palettes and the illustrations cover a range of styles, but they feel pretty loose and casual and fun.
there's kind of a mosaic style and a little scribble doodle style that you have going on for a lot of them. And it. It almost, it almost appears like they're effortless. So I really want to know, like, how do you come up with what you're drawing? Are they, commissioned from someone else? Or do you draw it first? And then someone says, Ooh, make me one of those. Or how does it all work? And how long does one take you? And all of that?
Kika: [00:09:01] That's a good question. it totally depends on the subject or what it is. I certainly do a lot of freelancing commissions, and work with different organizations in that realm. But most of the things that I post and create are just from my own personal experiences.
For example, the toxic gear culture post, and a lot of my activism posts are kind of ways to hold myself accountable. There are things that I recognize within myself and, you know, art is very personal and my Instagram before the toxic gear culture happened was very personal as well. So it was less about, the intention behind it was less about, Oh, is this going to be something that 50,000 people share? It was more about, wow, this is an experience that I'm having. And I hope that, others can relate or that I can learn from it by putting it out there. but I have noticed now that my, tactics and thinking about what I'm posting have definitely changed, and I've also been more strategic with using illustration as a tool.
To get these messages across. so an example is I recently found out about this massive open pit gold mining proposal on the South fork of the salmon river. And immediately I was like, this is something that a lot of people are talking about and a great way to spread that message would be through digital illustration.
So I just sat down and created one and posted it and, Saw the way it said it was immediately shared and that this message of a potential goldmine was shared really rapidly ending brands started to be aware of it. so in that sense, like the things that come up, or that I learned about that, I feel like maybe people aren't knowing about I'm using illustration as a tool, intentionally there, but I also, a lot of my illustrations are just personal things that I connect to.
Sarah: [00:10:38] Very cool. Yeah. I think, The idea that you just, you kind of call yourself out or hold yourself accountable and say things that are personal really resonates with me. rather than trying to think of something that To put it out there, thinking that you want 50,000 people to share it, I think is what holds a lot of people back.
and rather than thinking that at the get-go, when you share things that are personal and for you, that's what really strikes the chord. And you know, every once in a while, the, the chord sings and, and everybody picks it up and it takes off. But I don't think you can plan that.
Kika: [00:11:15] I think that's very true.
Marc: [00:11:17] You know, something I, I always share with my students. I teach a class at CCA called common designers, for undergrad graphic design and interaction design students. and, and something that we also share in our presentations, is that designers, illustrators anyone in the creative space, we have, a number of amazing super powers. And one of them is that we can take really complex ideas and turn them into something that can, that will make them more approachable, so that anyone can approach it and be like, Oh, I get it now. Right. And I'm not saying that designers need to explain every single thing, but yeah.
Well, the way that I look at it is like, let's hook people's attention. Let's get there, grab their attention. And if the designer illustrator filmmaker, if they do a good job and there's a really strong call to action, then that person will want to go further. They'll want to go and learn more. They want to go donate, sign the pledge, download, et cetera, et cetera.
So, do you have any, like, what's your thought process when it comes to what you want people to do? In a post after they read a post, like D does that come to mind at all when you're putting these together?
Kika: [00:12:26] Definitely. And again, it depends on, on what the post is specifically. but for a lot of them, you know, I, I hope to, to call people in and for example, tell them about this mining proposal.
And then within the posts, use that as a place to help people write letters to the forest service, leave comments, explain to all of the next action steps because you're right. It totally is that like hook, can we pull them in and can we take this issue? like if it is an open pit gold mine or something, a climate issue, can we make it emotional and can we make it personal?
And how do we get people to connect with it? Because that is what will drive them to do that next step. whatever it is that call to action.
Marc: [00:13:03] Yeah. And having a very strong call to action is, is really key. I want to shift gears a little bit. So you work with the intersectional environmentalist organization.
Can you share with our listeners a bit more about the organization, and what you do for them?
Kika: [00:13:16] Yeah, absolutely. so intersectional environmentalist is started by Leah Thomas, who I met while we were both working at Patagonia and she is an amazing environmental activist who at the start of the summer and the start of the black lives matter movement, had an experience similar to mine with the toxic gear culture posts, where she created a post about environmentalists for black lives matter and about, intersectional environmentalism that really went viral. That really struck a chord with people because it was, this message that had been missing from our whitewashed environmental movement for so long and, early on when it was just being started and she was just putting it together after she had made that post, she reached out to me, asking for some help with graphics for social media. Some digital illustrations, like we've been talking about, and I was really excited to jump on it because it is, this kind of complex and lofty idea, you know, we're, we're so used to thinking of environmentalism and then, racial justice as these really separate, activist ideas.
And so to, to find a way using illustration to bridge those and to boil down, like why. There is a connection and why it's important to have that conversation together was something I was really excited to do. So I created a series of graphics for her about that. That really focused on, you know, why, why racial justice is climate justice?
And I think what Leah Thomas has been doing is really cool because it's waking up a lot of people up to, the fact that, that this is, this is huge, that the groups who are often the least contributors to pollutants are the one who are most effected by climate change, that these voices have been.
Completely erased or not invited to the environmental conversation, but they're the ones who, who are being the most adversely affected. so I've been really inspired by the work that she has done, and it's really excited to get to help in the illustration sphere on that front.
Marc: [00:15:09] That's awesome. And it's only a few months old, correct?
Kika: [00:15:13] Yeah, yeah, yeah. she started at the beginning of the summer and they really were able to grow into a huge organization very quickly.
Marc: [00:15:20] And so someone who is pretty tapped into, the space, you know, climate activism and things, is that, or has that been moving the needle in this conversation?
Kika: [00:15:30] Absolutely.
Yeah, I think it has for sure. I, I mean, a huge testament to that is the fact that it has grown so much that so many people have followed and pledged their support. and also the amount of brands and other organizations who have worked with Leah Thomas and intersectional environmentalism. To make their environmentalism more intersectional to invite more voices to the table, to put black indigenous and people of color at the forefront of these conversations.
there's definitely been a huge change and there there's so much work to be done, but I think it is really cool that we've been able to see that start to happen.
Sarah: [00:16:05] it is really cool. And I am really excited that you, you know, bring your expressive style and color, and there's just a real joy. In your art style. just speaking like art school critique style, like the colors and the expressive gestural, you know, casual way that you, you illustrate is just really fun and joyful, and it, it really shows through the love that you have for the outdoors.
And, yeah, I think it's really brilliant and I love that you're, out here speaking for the earth and, and doing the good work.
Kika: [00:16:41] Thank you so much. I really appreciate that. I mean,
Sarah: [00:16:44] thank you.
Marc: [00:16:45] What would you say to, as we wrap up, what would you say to a young emerging artist, illustrator designer who finds themselves at the intersection with their interests around creativity, as well as climate and the environment, what would you say to them in terms of just how they can start to blend those things together?
Like what you were doing?
Kika: [00:17:04] I would definitely encourage them to focus their work on themselves in their community, you know, there is so much change and so much design potential that can happen in our spaces immediately around us. And it's very easy to, become so overwhelmed by how many designers there are in the world and how many fights there are to fight.
and just recentering it back to that personal connection and to the things that are happening immediately around you is a great way to create something that is authentic and that will make a difference. and just reaching out to local organizations and volunteering design work, is such an amazing way to gain experience and to make a difference.
I definitely got started doing climate design work through Catchafire. And finding organizations who needed, designs to help, help spread their environmental messages, and just volunteering my time because I can do it digitally and it was really easy. and that was a wonderful way to learn, but just, you know, find it, finding where the need is around you and staying true to, to what makes sense for you and to what really impacts you and the people around you is a great way to center it.
Sarah: [00:18:05] Catchafire is a great resource too. I've never heard of them. So I'll definitely check that out.
Kika: [00:18:10] Yeah, I would definitely recommend it. It's also a great way, like right now with, the global pandemic and everything and staying inside, you know, it's been so hard to find volunteering opportunities and to give back, but they have a ton of digital volunteering opportunities online, so.
Sarah: [00:18:23] Awesome. And where's the best way for someone to find your work online? I know you have website Instagram, all this stuff. Where would you have someone to go.
Kika: [00:18:31] Yes. you can follow me on Instagram at Kika Mack. K I K a M a C K, or, KikaMacFarlane.co.
Sarah: [00:18:40] Awesome. Thank you so much for chatting with us today.
Kika: [00:18:43] Thank you guys. I'm so honored that you reached out and it was great to chat.
Marc: [00:18:46] I appreciate it. You got to keep doing the good work.