Consider this a warning from the Poison Ivy Awareness Association of America

Remember that famous (or infamous, depending on your political leanings) Shepherd Fairey  Obama hope poster? For some reason, I got the itch to find out how to duplicate that look on my own. Sure, there are websites where you can upload a photo and have your face Obama-hope-posterized — “hopesterized” — but where’s the fun in that?

Fairey created his original using screen printing techniques, but with this handy tutorial as a starting point, Photoshop and Illustrator save you the stencil and acrylic work.

A sad portrait of a friend who was attacked in the face by poison ivy served as my guinea pig for my first “hopesterize” attempt. My technique’s not yet worthy for a spot in the Smithsonian next to Fairey’s original.

But, it’s still a pretty convincing warning about the dangers of poisonous foliage.

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