Category Archives: Education

Kotex confronts art world taboo with ‘Art’s Missing Period’ campaign

The art world has succumbed to controversy via a graphic outdoor display of the menstrual period. Continuing education of health issues is in the public interest so why is this display so disturbing to some?

Singapore – Kotex has launched a global campaign highlighting the absence of menstrual blood in mainstream art, positioning it as a long-standing form of cultural censorship.

Developed with DAVID London and Ogilvy Singapore, “Art’s Missing Period” brings together works that were previously rejected by galleries or removed from public display due to their depiction of menstruation. 

The campaign reframes the issue as one of visibility, arguing that while violent imagery involving blood is widely accepted, menstrual blood remains excluded.

Kotex revives banned art showing period blood

“Visibility shapes culture, and we set out to change both,” said Genevieve Gransden, Executive Creative Director at DAVID London. 

“This is not just a campaign. It is a restoration of voices, narrative and art that deserves to be seen,” said Selma Ahmed, Executive Creative Director at DAVID London.

The campaign includes a short documentary directed by Emmy award-winning filmmaker Kathryn Everett and narrated by journalist Noor Tagouri. 

The film examines how depictions of blood tied to violence are widely shown, while menstrual blood is treated as taboo, and features accounts from artists who have faced rejection linked to the theme.

Beyond film, Kotex has rolled out mobile billboards and street posters outside major museums, including the Guggenheim, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the Museum of Modern Art. 

The placements position the campaign directly at the doorstep of institutions central to shaping public art discourse.

QR codes embedded in these placements direct audiences to a virtual gallery hosting more than 40 artworks centred on menstruation. 

The online platform, launched on April 6, 2026, will run for one year and is designed to provide a dedicated space for artists and exhibitions exploring the subject.

The campaign marks Kotex’s latest effort to address stigma around periods, shifting the conversation from product messaging to broader cultural representation.

Thanks to Sharona Nicole Semilla of Marketech APAC for contributing this article

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog,Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.





The Fountain of Filth

This was one of the more unusual campaigns I’ve read about recently. Definitely an attention getter.

The U.K.’s Channel 4 unveils a vomiting public fountain

The U.K. broadcaster is promoting its new drama “Dirty Business” with a provocative public installation on London’s South Bank titled “The Fountain of Filth.” Created by 4Creative in partnership with Glue Society and Biscuit Filmworks, the 10-meter-wide fountain features bronze-style statues of men, women and children appearing to vomit murky brown water, while a suited executive stands above them with pockets stuffed with cash, symbolizing the alleged human toll of Britain’s sewage scandal.

(Water companies routinely discharge raw sewage into rivers and coastal waters, leading to public outcry.) The activation directs visitors via QR code to firsthand accounts tied to the series, which aired over three consecutive nights. Over 100,000 people saw the installation live and the work reached millions being featured in The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Mirror, Time Out and Secret London.

A wide view reveals a large sculptural fountain featuring multiple bronze figures and a suited man standing atop the center pedestal, with London’s skyline in the background.
​ (Channel 4) 
A close-up captures two bronze childlike figures in the fountain, water arcing from their mouths into the pool.
​ (Channel 4) 
A low-angle view shows multiple bronze figures around a large fountain, each spouting water into the basin beneath a suited statue standing on the top tier.
​ (Channel 4) 

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog,Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.

Brainstorming

I’ve had the privilege of listening to Dr. Firestien on several occasions when attending a webinar from the Center for Applied Imagination at Buffalo State in New York. He’s quite interesting and very personable.

What do a kingfisher, a hazard light and a waffle iron have in common? A creativity technique called Forced Connections, which leads to break through innovations. Brainstorming and coming up with new ideas is easy, we do it every day. Or so we think. The truth is we barely scratch the surface with our ”more of the same ideas”. We fall extremely short with quantity and quality of really good ideas. We miss the mark on really good innovations, because “More of the Same” does not break into big time innovation. Time to shift ideation gears with Dr. Roger Firestien and find out how to use a really simple ideation tool called ‘forced connections’. Not a new technique and certainly not a secret to those who work in the field of creativity, marketing or the business of creating ‘new and different’. However, new to most of us. Game changer. Creativity changer. Innovation changer.

Dr. Firestien is an associate professor and senior faculty member at the Center for Applied Imagination at SUNY Buffalo State and President of Innovation Resources, Inc. He is the author of six books, including Leading on the Creative Edge and Why didn’t I think of that? His expert views on creativity have been reported in Fast Company, Forbes, Investor’s Business Daily and The New York Times. When Roger is not traveling, he lives in Buffalo, New York, and regularly works cattle on the SK Hereford Ranch near Medina, New York This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog,Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.

Creativity Rising: Creative Thinking and Creative Problem Solving in the 21st Century

I’m on the email list of Buffalo State University’s Center for Applied Imagination and so I receive notices from time to time about upcoming lectures and seminars and the like. The publication cited below is from one of their recent notices.

From the authors . . . The need for creativity has never been greater. In fact, we chose the title, “Creativity Rising: Creative Thinking and Creative Problem Solving in the 21st Century,” to reflect this belief. If we are to live healthy, productive lives in this century we must develop the mind-set and the skill set for effectively responding to and initiating change. Creativity Rising is both a why-to and how-to guide to help you create your own future. In this book we: • explore the nature of creativity • debunk common myths about creativity • describe the rapid rise of change in the 21st century • outline the time-tested Creative Problem Solving process, an approach to on-demand creativity.

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog,Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.

Measuring Creativity


Fueling Creativity in Education bridges the gap between the science of creativity and classroom practice, with a focus on both creative teaching and teaching creativity. Since launching during the pandemic, we’ve interviewed over 100 leading researchers, educators, and administrators.

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog,Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.