For The People: Redesigning The U.S. Constitution We The People of ThoughtMatter are celebrating The Constitution through a redesign & sending as many as we can to schools & libraries.
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Jul 6, 2017 7:04 AM ET
For The People: Redesigning The U.S. Constitution
We The People of ThoughtMatter are celebrating The Constitution through a redesign & sending as many as we can to schools & libraries.
About this project
The Constitution of the United States of America is the most important document in our nation’s history. America was built upon and around it, and it defines our democratic principles, along with the inalienable rights guaranteed to every single citizen.
And it’s as important today, if not more so, than ever before.
Which is why We The People of ThoughtMatter want to celebrate the Constitution and all it means by making it more accessible than it has been in the past. Because while the document itself hasn’t changed, times have.
Through a redesign of the Constitution, we’re making the document more visually exciting and eye-catching, more compelling and easier to read.
We hope to foster conversation about what freedom and democracy mean in present day America. We want to help encourage people to educate themselves about the Constitution, and to interpret the document as it applies today.
Our Campaign Goal
If we reach our goal of $8,000, we’ll be able to print enough copies of the Constitution to send to each branch of the government.
With any additional profit, we’ll print as many copies of this redesigned Constitution as we can and distribute them to public schools, libraries, and other educational centers across the country. We hope to get this interesting and easy-to-read version of the Constitution into the hands and minds of as many young people as possible – because we believe it’s important for everyone to have the opportunity to learn as much as they can about a document that shapes their lives.
If we can pull it off, and there are some left over, we’d love to dump a bunch of copies on the White House lawn – or as close to it as we can get!
If successfully funded by August 4th, we will prepare and print all rewards and aim to ship them by September 17th, the date the Constitution was signed in 1787.
Why A Redesign?
By redesigning how the Constitution looks and is organized, we aim to make this historic document more aesthetically pleasing, exciting to leaf through and easy to read. Our design concept and system works to deliver the Constitution’s content in a more interesting and digestible way than typical versions. Great design can elevate messages both simple and complex, and we feel it’s long past due that the Constitution receives such a creative treatment.
We used an original, unaltered transcript of the Constitution, Bill of Rights and Amendments 11-27 from the National Archives, without any interpretations or commentary – meaning the document’s content has not been changed in any way.
The Book
We have designed our book to include three different-sized sections which will be bound together in the finished book. The smallest, outermost section contains the Constitution’s Preamble. The mid-sized, innermost section contains the Bill of Rights and Amendments 11-27. The largest section is sandwiched between the two and contains the bulk of the Constitution’s text – Articles 1-7.
The book will be Riso printed using soy-based ink on pink paper. Risograph printers were commonly used in schools and government offices in the 1990s as a cost-effective alternative to offset printing. Unlike photocopiers or laser printers, which use heat to fix ink to paper, Risographs use a rotating drum with wet ink, which passes through a negative to apply an image on paper.
We will be working with a small print studio to produce each book. Depending on the number of backers, the binding will be saddle-stitched with staples or machine-sewn with thread. Stay tuned for updates!
When you choose a reward that includes a book, we will print an additional copy to send to a school, library or educational center on your behalf. Stay tuned for updates on how the destinations will be chosen!
Rewards
Our Story
ThoughtMatter is a creative branding and design studio with an artful perspective. We focus on projects with purpose and work worth doing. We are endlessly intrigued by what can be possible when designers refuse to divorce their core beliefs from their craft. And we believe that art has never been more important in fostering change. Through projects like these, we hope to champion that message and do some social good.
Risks and challenges
Some aspects of production have yet to be finalized because they will be affected by the level of support we receive. We are dedicated to creating the highest quality product possible for our backers.
The binding of the books will be determined based on the quantity of books printed. The options are a traditional staple saddle stitch binding or a more premium stitched binding with blue thread. We will evaluate the economy of scale throughout the campaign and will be posting updates on our production plan.
The logistics of where and how we will be donating the books will also be determined based on the quantity of books printed. We will be posting updates on our plans for donating copies of the book throughout the campaign.