The UCLA Library will launch an online collection of more than 600 AIDS posters from countries around the world on Friday, Dec. 1, at http://digital.library.ucla.edu/aidsposters. The release of this digital project has been scheduled in conjunction with World AIDS Day.

"The collection is incredibly rich," said David Gere, director of the Art|Global Health Center at UCLA. "You can see some of the best graphic interventions in global health, as well as some of the worst, but the important thing is that all 625 posters are readily available at the touch of a button, to be seen and studied by any researcher with access to the net."

The posters were issued by a variety of institutions and organizations to educate and warn people about AIDS and to offer advice and information in visual form. Some are more blunt and graphic than others, and they come in many styles.

"The collection provides a fascinating insight into the many approaches that have been used to try to modify risk behaviors," said Roger Detels, M.D., M.S., UCLA professor of epidemiology and infectious diseases. "The posters range from terrifying to amusing and reflect the many cultures from which they have been drawn, which include national cultures and risk group cultures. The collection should be of interest to anyone interested in the history of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and attempts to control it."

Many of the posters employ arresting photography, such as an example from Austria with a black-and-white photograph of two arms and hands curved to form the shape of an AIDS ribbon. Others feature colorful cartoons or drawings, such as an example from Germany with a crayon drawing of a child in a field of flowers with arms stretched wide for a hug. Still others simply use text in a striking manner, such as a U.S. example with the words "Let me help you" in white on a field of solid black, with the message at the bottom, "If you want him to use a condom, this is all you have to say."

The posters come from 44 countries, including Australia, Austria, Canada, China, Costa Rica, France, Germany, India, Japan, Luxembourg, Martinique, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Tahiti, Uganda, the United Kingdom and the United States. The physical collection is held in UCLA's Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library History and Special Collections.

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