At Design Indaba’s 25th Edition, British political art collective Led By Donkeys delivered a captivating and entertaining talk to demonstrate how design can become a powerful tool for activism. Formed during the height of the Brexit crisis in the United Kingdom, the anonymous group began as a guerrilla poster campaign exposing contradictions, broken promises and public statements made by pro-Brexit politicians. What started as a late-night act of protest quickly evolved an influential political communication movement.
During their presentation, Led By Donkeys reflected on how frustration with political misinformation and media failure motivated them to take matters into their own hands. Using little more than ladders, wheatpaste and billboard space, they transformed politicians’ own words into public interventions. They reproduced archived quotes and social media posts in highly visible urban spaces, to draw attention to what they describe as political hypocrisy while inviting citizens to engage more critically with political discourse.
The collective explored the role of humour and satire in political engagement, with many of their projects being deliberately provocative, their work relies on wit, using irony and visual simplicity to reach broad audiences across ideological divides. Campaigns such as purchasing the domain name thebrexitparty.com and offering to sell it back to Nigel Farage became examples of how creative interventions can generate public debate while exposing contradictions within political narratives.
Led By Donkeys presentation showcased how graphic design can move beyond branding and commerce into the realm of democratic participation. Their presentation highlighted the power of creative activism to challenge authority, provoke conversation and re-engage citizens in political life. Through satire, public intervention and strategic communication, they showed that design can be both a cultural weapon and a tool for collective accountability.
