Haunting renderings show what the Montreal Olympic Stadium, downtown Toronto and New York's Times Square would look like if they were targets in a war. The images directly recall Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's address to the Parliament of Canada, in which he challenged Canadians to imagine a foreign invader attacking their cities.
The renderings, by ad companies TANK WW and Grey Canada, are part of a new campaign to raise money for Razom, an organization that says it's providing "critical humanitarian war relief" to Ukraine.
A website, FeelWhatWeFeel.com, allows users to see before and after images of a hypothetical assault on the three cities, echoing Zelenskyy's plea to Canadian MPs.
"Imagine that someone is laying siege to Vancouver," he said in the March 15 speech.
"Can you imagine the famous CN Tower in Toronto if it was hit by Russian bombs?"
"They are taking down Ukrainian flags. Can you imagine someone taking down your Canadian flags in Montreal and other Canadian cities?"
"Of course, I don't wish this on anyone but this is our reality."
Split image showing what downtown Toronto could look like before and after a war.FeelWhatWeFeel.com
The pro bono campaign by TANK WW and Grey Canada will include "out-of-home, social media, online and public relations in Canada and later the U.S.," the companies said in a press release.
They also say transit riders will soon see billboards with QR codes they can use to view the renderings.
"As an industry we have a voice and a public platform, and therefore also an obligation to craft powerfully effective messages for good that can have direct impact on human lives," Grey Canada Executive Director Mark Mason said in the release.
"In this case, for the people of Ukraine. May we always feel what they feel."
