Morgan McConnell, who also works under the pseudonym dangerboy, is a professional graphic designer and artist living on the West coast of British Columbia. He has worked as a fire performer and as a professional designer for over 10 years.

Morgan is self-taught as a web and print designer and has worked in Victoria, Australia, Borneo, Fiji, and most recently in his birth city of Vancouver. His clients range from small businesses and independent musicians to politicians and professional photographers.

Always dabbling in art and sketching, it wasn’t until he sat down in front of a computer that Morgan felt truly able to express his stream-of-consciousness designs. Ranging stylistically from multilayered visual conglomerations to clean, bright, and minimal work, his art has become an honest reflection of his views of humanity and the world around us, usually borrowing heavily from nature.

Morgan has been HIV-positive for 7 years, but this subject does not dominate his work. He prefers to see and be seen without labels or society-based definitions, and to artistically comment on society at large. Sometimes, though, he just likes to make pretty pictures.

For more information, please visit Morgan’s web site at www.dangerboydesign.net.

Want to learn more about this exciting artist? Click here to read an interview with Morgan McConnell that appeared in the Spring 2008 edition of InfoCAS, the Canadian AIDS Society’s newsletter.

In the majority of his work, Morgan McConnell prefers to let the viewer see their own meaning in his images. He enjoys seeing how others interpret his stream-of-consciousness designs. The Nest, however, had a precise meaning from conception.

The Nest depicts a crow perched on a near-barren tree. The bird has a red ribbon in its beak, fluttering in the wind towards the sole sprout of leaves on a distant branch. There is a sense of movement from chaos, entanglement, and blackness to the openness, clarity, and simplicity of the new growth.

As Morgan explains: “Since the mid-1990s, HIV has been losing importance in the eyes of many Canadians. It has been downgraded from deadly disease to manageable illness, and for many people it has become something that one can easily live with. This new face of HIV has made it seem much less deadly to society at large.”

“For those living with the virus, however, HIV has not been forgotten,” Morgan continues. “People in Canada are still getting sick and dying. The false sense that HIV is manageable has led to people in Canada, including youth, becoming infected at an ever-increasing rate.”

In The Nest, the crow sees beauty in what has been discarded. Representing the older, more experienced generation, it picks up that ribbon again and uses it to create a nest of awareness, research, and education to give the next generation a chance to live without the virus.

As Morgan describes: “Knowledge, awareness, and understanding about HIV must become more common and lead us away from the barren tangle of misinformation, misunderstanding, and intolerance. But for this tree to reach its potential, we must nurture, protect, and love it.”

The Scotiabank AIDS Walk for Life chose this particular piece, in part, because it speaks directly to the work AIDS service organizations are doing across Canada: serving and supporting the needs of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS and raising awareness about HIV/AIDS in cities and communities across the country. 
  

After receiving so many wonderful submissions for the 2008 artwork competition, the Scotiabank AIDS Walk for Life felt compelled to award a runner-up honorarium and honourable mention to Gustavo Hannecke for his work, Human Ribbon Power.

Human Ribbon Power is a mixed-media piece incorporating photography, drawing, and graphic design. “This is an image of me and the ribbon that, almost like a shadow, follows me,” Gustavo explains. “The red ribbon holds meaning in my life as a symbol of empowerment. It helps me stay motivated, remembering that many people support me through various channels, including volunteering, donating funds to AIDS service organizations, and participating in HIV/AIDS fundraising and awareness events like the Scotiabank AIDS Walk for Life.”

“Living with HIV is a journey that must be taken one day at a time,” continues Gustavo. “I carry a past that sometimes hurts too much to remember and live with a very uncertain future. However, with the support I receive from my friends, family, and community, life is becoming peaceful and meaningful. The red ribbon is there to remind me of all this wonderful support.”

Gustavo Hannecke was born in Argentina in 1960, growing up in a tumultuous environment both politically and personally. After studying math, physics, and computing, he moved to Canada in 1992 with his wife and children to search for new opportunities.

After coming out as a gay person, his marriage fell apart, and Gustavo soon discovered that he was HIV positive. He left his corporate job to recover and decided to change his career toward photography and digital art. He chose to dedicate his life to HIV advocacy, art, and healthy living that includes a great partner, lots of time at the gym, and a healthy diet.

Gustavo’s artwork has been published with the AIDS Committee of Ottawa in Our Way Through, a book of photography and stories from people living with HIV in Ottawa. His photography and digital art have been exhibited in Vancouver, Toronto, and Ottawa.