I started a photo series a couple of years ago as a way to document and pay attention to the pervasiveness of NO in American culture – as expressed through signage. A few interesting observations:
The frequency of NO signs varies by location. In cities, there are a lot of rules about how you can interact with public space (ie: parking) and where you are (or are not) allowed to consume beverages, food, and cigarettes. In rural areas, there are fewer signs, but there are very clear (and adamant) rules about how human beings are allowed to interact with nature. In my travels to other countries, these nature rules don’t necessarily exist — or if they do, there are far fewer. Nor do many other cultures have the same frequency of NO signs in urban areas.
I’m particularly intrigued by handmade signs. It’s curious that people make signs forbidding or discouraging behavior of other human beings with the expectation that these demands will be met. It’d be interesting to do a study on how often these handmade signs are adhered to as compared to government generated signs.
My overall insight thus far is that there are a high number of demands upon American behavior expressed in signage, and we’ve become quite accustomed to seeing these notifications.
See more photos on Flickr.
