NAOMI PLEASURE-PARK
02 SNAKE OIL
Publication Design
Cardstock, Cricut foil, Bookbinding materials
A WORLD OF DECEPTION
This book provides a selection of artifacts—past and present, visual and textual—documenting the marketing and effects of “Snake Oil” products. Ineffective at best and deadly at worst, these supposed cures have a complex history of making their way into our homes and broader cultural landscapes.
I assembled this book with the intention of providing all readers some- thing new to wonder, reflect, learn, or laugh about, regardless of any perceptions coming into the reading experience.
THE FINE PRINT
From the original snake oil that claimed to reduce inflammation, to modern-day scams like colloidal silver supposedly aimed at attacking COVID-19 particles, false health advertising has been endemic for all of recorded history, and likely longer.Most of the examples in the book could be boiled down to cut-and-dry cases of snake oil salesmanship. However, the people huckstering these solutions tend to spin a complex web of terminology to feign credibility to their target customers.
I used small, intricate details in my bookbinding and digital design processes that represent the complexities and often patchwork nature of the products themselves.