Today is World Homeless Day, and we’re using our work to highlight an issue that’s impossible to ignore – homelessness on London’s streets. Last year, 13,231 people slept rough in the capital, the highest number ever recorded. Thousands more are on the edge.

Greenwashing has become fashion’s dirtiest trend. Investigations have shown that the majority of sustainability claims made by fashion brands are misleading or false. And only 3% of items in UK and US collections carry genuine sustainability credentials. That’s not progress. That’s a crisis of trust.

As designers, we believe in the power of visual communication to provoke thought, ignite emotion, and drive change. That’s why we created a bold and unsettling campaign to confront an issue that can no longer be ignored: the relentless discharge of raw sewage into our rivers and seas by water companies.

This year’s season’s greetings come with a warning; 2024 is projected to be the first year to surpass the global warming limit of 1.5°C, highlighting the urgent need for climate action.

We’re marking 40 years of London Fashion Week with a reality check. Our latest Blast Campaign highlights the impact our shopping habits and obsession with ‘adding to basket’ is having on our planet.

This time of year often poses challenges for many, casting a shadow on life’s usual brightness. Great Mental Health Day urges Londoners to open up about their mental well-being, emphasising that seeking help is perfectly acceptable.

Wishing you a Christmas filled with serenity and a New Year where, in the words of John Lennon, ‘the world will live as one’. This year, instead of printing cards and treating our clients (sorry folks!), we are donating to the British Red Cross to bring a little help and hope to the victims of the Gaza conflict.

It’s more than just a balmy July here at Mission Control; It’s Plastic Free July! So, in addition to swerving all types of malleable polymers, we’ve created a poster campaign to highlight the harm of single-use plastic. Often used excessively and discarded without care, single-use plastic is damaging environments around the world. Astonishingly, over 15 million tons of it is thrown away every month – which sucks!

Another strange year that brought us many things we didn’t ask for, from bumbling British politics to cringeworthy celebrities. Here’s a few reminders of some of 2022’s more baffling moments. Happy New Year from the team at Blast. Hoping for a brighter 2023, that brings us things we really want.

For the third in our series of road sign themed posters aimed at passing drivers and pedestrians, we’ve created a new campaign for International Migrants Day. Migrants and displaced people represent some of the most vulnerable and marginalized groups in society, and are often exposed to abuse, exploitation and xenophobic attacks fuelled by misinformation.

Following last months poster for the United Nations International Clean Air for Blue Skies Day we’ve designed a new campaign for World Mental Health Day. Continuing with the road sign theme, this one utilises the psychedelic illustration skills of our latest Blast crew member, Pewand.

As designers we want to use our ideas and skills to raise awareness of causes and events we believe in. So we’re designing poster campaigns that will make people think about their actions and behaviours and hopefully be a small catalyst for change. Our campaigns communicate directly to passing traffic and our local community through an old poster site at the entrance to our studio in Hackney.

Following the huge cop out that was COP 26, we thought we should celebrate a green Christmas this year. So, instead of producing a printed card, we’ve gone tree-friendly with our 100% paper-free, climate emergency-inspired offering. As our trees and forests are essential in the fight against climate change we’ve also decided to make a donation to Greenpeace.

We turned 25 this year, but instead of reflecting on the past we decided to look forward to the next phase of our journey. We want to do something meaningful and help contribute to a brighter future. Mid-life crisis? No, more environmental crisis! So what can we do to make a difference? We believe we’ll have the most impact by using our skills and experience as designers and communicators to spread the word of causes we believe in.

Launching in 1996, we embarked on our journey into the unknown. Making contact with like-minded clients we began exploring and discovering creative possibilities for brands and organisations. Our 25 year mission has seen us create brands for word-class universities, museums and orchestras. Collaborate with the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Warner Bros. Studios. And launch campaigns for UK Parliament, The Royal Society, Wellcome and Tate.

2020 gave a lot, but nothing we really wanted. It really has been a year to forget. Due to the current Covid situation our Christmas offering is designed for Instagram, and is guaranteed 100% virus free! So turn up your sound, put on your mask and mumble along to our 12 ‘gifts’ of 2020.

We’re really excited to have been invited to contribute to the letterpress protest posters exhibition: Reverting to Type 2020 Blast’s contributions to this international show are the ‘Trump & Brexit’ (2016) and ‘Love & Hate’ (2018) posters. 

It’s our 24th Birthday today – whoop, whoop! Yes, on the 1st April 1996 Blast was born to the world. At the time our accountant took one look at us and said he’s give us 6 months in business – I wonder what he’s doing now! This seems an appropriate time to put a big shout out to all our amazing friends, clients and collaborators who have made the past 24 years, well, a Blast really. Cheers!