“When brands advertise on our street structures, they become part of the public social space, entering people’s thoughts and conversations.”

SO READS the unapologetic sales pitch of billboard giant Clear Channel. Consumer advertising has become so ubiquitous in our streets, on our phones, our websites, on public transport that it feels inescapable.

Often we have little choice as to whether we engage with it. Advertising has become the cultural water we swim in; re-enforcing the messages, priorities and ideologies of consumer capitalism at an everyday level.

The effect of companies bombarding us thousands of times a day is that, through the power of repetition and carefully presented imagery, big brands can portray a shiny version of themselves that masks their more destructive practices. This can leave us feeling subtly deceived; similar to when speaking to a dodgy salesman pushing a hard sell.