MFA THESES EXHIBITIONS

CAYCIE TROTTER | REVEALING THE TRUTH

DEGREE AWARD DATE: SPRING 2025

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Caycie Trotter, from Spring Garden, Alabama, holds a BFA from Jacksonville State University; her current focus and that of her MFA thesis is Visual Communication Design. Through her Graphic Design and Illustration skills, Caycie strives to create brand experiences that captivate audiences, foster connections, and inspire creativity. Additionally, she has special interests in printmaking and 3D modeling. Caycie has a passion for teaching design and hopes to soon become a professor of graphic design.

ARTIST'S STATEMENT

The war on drugs began on June 17, 1971. Many campaigns and projects were launched to help fight this war, including D.A.R.E. and "Just Say No," which were among the first and most popular initiatives. Revealing the Truth: The Consequences of Failed Drug Campaigns and the Dehumanization of People Suffering from Addiction is a thesis exhibition show and paper that explores these failed campaigns and highlights their lasting effects, including the dehumanization of people struggling with addiction, widespread misinformation, and the amplification of abuse. These effects have shaped how our government deals with drug abuse issues today, leading to mass incarceration rates, increased violence, systemic issues, and discrimination. The goal of this thesis is to get the attention of policymakers and designers who help make these campaigns, recognize the effects that campaigns like these have on people, and encourage them to take a more progressive and effective approach to this issue.

THESIS PAPER