1968:Protest and The Photobook

Speaking about the era of the 1960s and early 1970s, documentary film director Chris Marker used the expression “air color red”, meaning primarily the rise of social rights movements. Events have captured the whole world – for the first time in the history of modern times, the student has realized that she is an independent force, and youth movements have created new forms of life, culture and art. The peak of the strikes of students and workers in Italy fell on the years 1968-1969. Student discontent was due to education reform. Student studies have touched other continents: South and North America, Asia, and Africa. And in Mexico in 1968 Olympics held games. Huge money was allocated from the state budget for this mass event, which led to an increase in taxes. In the US, the fight against racial segregation and education policy has become a feature of student speeches.

But how young generation know about 1968? What historical confirmation of that year was preserved in the archives? Is there was some media, which people use to tell the truth about , media fro public perception and understanding of political movements, such as mainstream press, newspapers, zine?

If you are interesting in mainstream press and mass media about 1968 year events, that you would be interested to visit exhibition at Tate Modern call “1968: Protests and The Photobook”.

As we know, worldwide protests of 1968 for the civil rights, feminism, against military and bureaucratic elites… massive protests all over the World, one of the most dramatic years in modern history. And such  a small room (as I can call it a room) at Tate Modern with artists work about protests. So the question is why then I spend in this room more time than in others? The answer is posters.  They will tell you  how the 1968 year protests impacted on artists, inspiring agitation propogandation posters, such a new form of art. Posters are simple, not goo drawing, but “screaming”. “RETOUR A LA NORMALE” – return to normal, with sheeps on it, French poster. Even if you don’t know the French, you can easily understand what is this poster telling you. Clone of sheep Dolly, making everyone the same. The most posters from France, as we know the best known events took place in France.

The photobooks were published around all this year, and showing political activism in France, Japan, Italy, Czechoslovakia. Some photos document activism actions.

Should be there some documentary film about these protest? Unfortunately I didn’t find it, or pass away, without any attention.Even I spent long time in this room, I would expected from this exhibition  to see more about this historical year.

At my Christmas holidays I had chance to visit exhibition about the same topic in Moscow. The exhibition was at Moscow Museum of modern art and  called “Forbidden to Forbid”. This exhibition is different from Tate Modern’s exhibition, it is not focused on the events of 1968, she talks about the student and strike movements in the world in the 1960s.

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