Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's an 18m tall condom in the middle of Hyde Park.
It's not just there for a giggle or a good time. The condom, dubbed "Australia's largest," will cover the heritage-listed Hyde Park Obelisk for the next week to boost awareness among gay men about HIV.
The giant condom, by experiential agency Revolution 360, is part of the 'I'm On' safe sex campaign for health promotion agency ACON and has been rolled on out over the last three weeks across gay-focused, mainstream and social media.
The agency is aiming to promote awareness among gay men about how they can help end HIV transmission in NSW by 2020.
As part of the installation, safe sex ambassadors will be handing out information on health and social benefits of safe sex to passer-bys.
ACON CEO Nicolas Parkhill said the campaign is trying to push the central message that, despite new drugs providing other means of HIV protection, the condom remains one of the most effective measures.
"The need for gay men to ‘stay safe’ by using condoms is at the core of NSW’s strategy for eliminating HIV transmission by the end of the decade. We won’t be able to achieve this goal unless gay men use condoms when they’re having high-risk sex with casual partners, particularly in situations where a partner’s HIV status isn’t known – it’s that simple," Parkhill said.
Credits:
Revolution360
Director of Events & Experiential: Nigel Ruffell
Head of Production: Amanda Hughes
Campaign Administration: Laura Carroll
Sales Manager: Michael Fishwick
ACON:
Planners: Tony Tang, Yves Calmette
Campaign Production: Mike Wacher
Marketing: Michael Badorrek
Men At Work Communications
PR Communications: Michael Willcocks, Allan Storman, Jonas Tobias
