Hasta La Creative!

Publicis's poignant print ads for suicide-prevention group Samaritans of Singapore use ambigrams to give upbeat messages negative meanings when viewed upside down. "I'm fine" becomes "Save me," "Life is great" morphs into "I hate myself" and "I feel fantastic" reads "I'm falling apart." The tagline, "The signs are there if you read them. Help us save a life before it's too late," is also printed upside down. The campaign does a fine job of depicting the subtle, often hidden nature of depression and anxiety disorders. It's novel for the category, taking an approach that's clever enough to generate broad coverage, extending the message far beyond its original market. Perhaps those reading about this work will question declarations of happiness from friends and family members that don't quite ring true. The writing may be on the wall, but sometimes you've got to look at things in a different way to avert disaster.