TRANSPORT ACCIDENT COMMISSION | Ungiven Gifts | 2014
209 Gifts That Were Never Given / Transport Accident Commission "Ungiven Gifts"
209 gifts, each painted white, stand in a square in Melbourne. Toys, handbags, a vase, a scarf. Each one even has a handwritten tag attached, but there's no one left to receive them.
The problem
In 2013, 209 people died in road accidents in the state of Victoria. The TAC is the organization that has long handled road safety advertising for the state. Choosing the Christmas season, when families gather together, they made this number visible.
The insight
The number 209 alone doesn't make anyone stop and look. But the moment it becomes "gifts that were never given," you realize that behind each one was an item chosen for someone you can no longer see. The one thing that's changed forever isn't just the person who died, but the Christmas their family now has to face every year without them.
The idea
In the forecourt of the State Library, they lined up 209 gifts, all painted white. Visitors could write safe-driving pledges or messages to loved ones who had died on a Christmas tree nearby, and a flood of words and photos gathered under #ungivengifts.
What happened
At Cannes Lions 2014, it was the only Australian campaign to win Gold in the Promo and Activation category. The TAC had run a campaign the year before built around the theme of "empty seats," so this quiet way of making a point is consistent with their approach.
Afterthought
There's no loud sound, no dramatic staging. Just 209 white gifts, sitting there. A scarf that was surely chosen for someone rests on its stand, never handed over. That fact alone says more than enough.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Gold 2014
