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W+K Interns Made Beach Towels Illustrating Signs of Skin Cancer

3 designs represent varying skin tones

We all learned our ABCs as children; as adults, they play an important role in detecting skin cancer. 

Wieden + Kennedy London gave two creative interns—Hannah Young and Aleksandra Atanasovski—a brief in May, charging the pair with designing something they were both passionate about and would look good in their portfolios.

The duo, now full-time junior creatives at the agency, partnered with Skcin, a London-based skin cancer charity, to create beach towels that are both Instagrammable and potentially life-saving. The partnership came to fruition like most things these days—over Zoom.

Sun&See towels cost £29.99 and come in three colors—Pearl Prevention, Sand Safety and Bronze Aware—to denote different skin tones. The towel border defines the ABCs of melanoma: Asymmetry, Border, Color, Diameter, and Evolving. Inside that border are degrees of spots to represent the ABC progression of melanoma.

“The towel was inspired by the markings of a really popular animal print—cheetah,” says Young. “We could see how the spots could be easily translated into moles. Growing up in a generation where getting the ‘perfect’ suntan was socially desired, we had previously looked into skin safety and knew about the warning signs to look out for. So we created our own pattern using these signs to create a useful and educational beach towel, making it easier to check yourself.”

The towels are being promoted on Skcin’s and W+K’s Instagram and Twitter pages. The duo are also working with influencers to promote the cause.

Young and Atanasovski concepted Sun&See two weeks after receiving the brief and began work on design, manufacturing, packaging and website development.

“We came up with the brand name to direct people’s attention to checking their skin whilst in and out of the sun,” added Young.

There’s always time to play connect the dots with freckles, right?

CREDITS

Creative Directors: Adam Newby and Will Wells
Creatives: Hannah Young and Aleks Atanasovski
Photographer: Sofija Vujanic
Post production: Jade Lamb 
Producer: Sammy Watts Stanfield
Editor: David Brodie 
Models: Kieran Ralph, Amber Mitchell Hatchman, Kayleigh Quartey
PR Director: Lee Gunther

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