Propaganda is as old as human society. Sometime in 300 BC Aetolia gained control of the revered sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi. When in 279/8 BC the Gauls attacked the sanctuary Aetolia participated in its defence and defeated the Gallic attack. Later, in a propaganda move, Aetolians instituted the competition of the Soteria in
“a festival for Zeus Soter and Pythian Apollo as a memorial of the battle that occurred against the barbarians who attacked the Greeks and the sanctuary of Apollo common to the Greeks, against whom the People sent out the elite troops and cavalry to share in the struggle for the collective preservation…”Despite the fact that there is clear evidence that the Phocians also played a significant role in the repulse of the Gauls’ invasion, the Aetolians claimed sole responsibility for this victory. Some 30 years later they restructured the festival on a majestic scale, lionising themselves as the heroic defenders of Hellenism against a barbarian peril. This propaganda ostensibly was persuasive to the extent that the second-century AD traveler Pausanias (Description of Greece, 10. 19 .5) states that the Gauls’ incursion of 279 BC was the severest menace in all of Greek history. Similarly, in mid-second century, Polybius compared the attack with the great Persian invasion of fifth century BC, (Histories, 2, 35. 7).
All ancient empires tried to validate their triumphs - to themselves, to their own people, and to those they dominated. The Persian propaganda, in Persepolis reliefs, showing the ethnic hierarchy of the empire that ranges from Persians at the top and centers to Greeks at the bottom and periphery, tried to project an egalitarian approach, whereby all nations in the empire were represented equally in their role of supporting and elevating the royal throne, bearing gifts and offering tribute. In Isa 60, the changelessness, the grandeur, and the fortitude of Persian imperial propaganda was being drafted, reinterpreted and incorporated in Jerusalem. The Pax Persicabecame Pax Jerusalem.
Establishing an imperial world-view, the Romans propaganda grew during the existence of the empire, most notably with the adoption of Christianity in the early fourth century AD. Propagating the idea that Rome represented peace, good government, and the rule of law. Fast forward to the days of the Spanish Armada (1588), when Sir Walter Raleigh complained that it was “no marvel that the Spaniard should seek by false and slanderous pamphlets, advisoes, and letters, to cover their own loss and to derogate from others their own honours, especially in this fight being performed far off.” And then he recalled that back at the time of the Spanish Armada, when the Spaniards “purposed the invasion” of England, they published “in sundry languages, in print, great victories in words, which they pleaded to have obtained against this realm; and spread the same in a most false sort over all parts of France, Italy, and elsewhere.”
In 1936, when totalitarian regimes in Germany and the Soviet Union resorted to propaganda to engineer the opinions of their citizens, strengthen their own dogmas and partialities, and rationalise atrocious wrongdoings, Aldus Huxley wrote: “Propaganda gives force and direction to the successive movements of popular feeling and desire; but it does not do much to create those movements. The propagandist is a man who canalises an already existing stream. In a land where there is no water, he digs in vain.” A year earlier, W. E. B. Du Bois published an influential book titled Black Reconstruction in America in which he argued American history have been falsified because the nation was ashamed. An American youth attending college, would in all probability complete his education without any idea of the part which the black race has played in America; of the tremendous moral problem of abolition; of the cause and meaning of the Civil War and the relation which Reconstruction had to democratic government. According to him “it is propaganda like this that has led men in the past to insist that history is “lies agreed upon”; and to point out the danger in such misinformation.”
Propaganda is defined as; the systematic propagation of official government policies through manipulative communications to the public. The propaganda may provide true or false information, but the information is selectively presented in a provoking style to have its maximum emotional effect. The term “propaganda” apparently first came into common use in Europe as a result of the missionary activities of the Catholic church. In 1622 Pope Gregory XV created in Rome the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith. This was a commission of cardinals charged with spreading the faith and regulating church affairs in heathen lands.
In modern times it is argued that propaganda and public diplomacy are interrelated, with the former having a negative connotation. According to Joseph Nye Jr.’s definition Public Diplomacy is “building relationships with civil-society actors in other countries and about facilitating networks between nongovernmental parties at home and abroad”. On the other hand, Leonard Doob defines propaganda as the “control of individuals through the use of suggestion…regardless of whether or not the propaganda intends to exercise the control”, which suggests an element of mind engineering that is absent in public diplomacy.
Propaganda posters appeared in earnest during World War One (1914-18) when each of the belligerent governments used them not only as a means of legitimizing their engagement to their people, but also as a means of enlisting men, and selling war bonds in order to finance the military campaign. With the outbreak of the First World War, advertising was used to attract volunteers. In 1914, the image of Lord Kitchener, the Minister of War in the UK, was depicted on a poster with a steely gaze and a pointing finger urging young men to ‘join your country’s army’. The identical approach, it seems, was adopted in every other country. In Germany a Reich soldier, pointing his patriotic digit, admonishing ‘Auch du sollst beitreten zur Reichswehr (You, too, should join the Reichswehr. ).’ It was the same on Italian posters.
The ‘four minute men’ of the US propaganda machine at the Committee on Public Information would deliver inciting speeches to potential volunteers under a poster depicting a stern Uncle Sam pointing his finger at the impressionable young man, pleading: ‘I want YOU for US army’ in 1917. According to Stephen Fox, the author of The Mirror Makers, the committee spend 1.5 million dollars on advertising for war. Many graphic designers who had fueled the propaganda war machine, including James Montgomery Flagg, who created the Uncle Sam ‘I want YOU’ poster, were stricken with remorse after the war. According to Flagg:
‘A number of us who were too old or too scared to fight prostituted our talents by making posters inciting a large mob of young men who had neverdone anything to us to hop over and get shot at. . . We sold the war to youth.’Nevertheless, perhaps out of a sense of patriotism, many of the graphic designers in the bellicose countries were convinced of the truth of the messages they had delivered.
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“Weapons for death - weapons for life! Subscribe to the Victory Loan. ” 1918. |
Modernist art movements were influencing propaganda posters from the early 20st century. A good example of the avant garde movement influence is a famous piece Beat the Whites with the red wedge - by El Lissitzky, in 1920 which used various geometric color surfaces in an abstract fashion. Lissitzky used this subtle platform to suggest in a blunt propaganda massage.
This early Russian revolutionary poster, "Believe, will celebrate the hundredth anniversary," is one of the many posters that used modernism as was practiced by Fernand Léger , Marc Chagall and others.
Beat the Whites with the red wedge - 1920
... the atmosphere of the times, all fire and fever, tumultuous, lyrical, glittering. It could only take place in a style matching the artistic adventures of our time, in a strictly contemporary mode. The artists had from Il Duce a clear and precise order; to make something MODERN, full of daring. And they have faithfully obeyed his commands.
Ludwig Hohlwein,. Red Cross Collection 1914. Collection in support of volunteer nursing in the war. 1914,
Images of women have been prominent in the war poster propaganda as well as in other ideologically driven posters. The images of motherhood have been exploited to symbolize national security, sanctity of homes, duty to country and duty to family. Many of the propaganda posters portrait femininity as passive and in need of protection. Some posters emphasize the patriotic mother who is willing to sacrifice her sons to the war effort. The propaganda has been used to provoke a nationalistic attitude towards the motherland, a place that is pure, noble and different. In the classic war propaganda campaigns of the 20th Century, women as victims of rape often symbolize the brutality of the enemy as well as the despoiling of the motherland's culture and harmony. Ironically, however, women are sometimes portrayed as potential traitors or unwitting accomplices by virtue of their supposed tendency to gossip. Through this cultural stereotyping, an atmosphere of suspicion is created and domestic surveillance becomes embedded into the national consciousness as one of the justified costs of war.
Soviet propaganda posters of the 1920s and the 1930s often portrayed women as larger-than-life figures, reflecting their new economic role and socio-political power and importance. Women equality was enshrined in the Soviet constitution. To realize this ideal, there was a need to set up various institutions that would allow women to become engaged fully in the productive sectors of the economy. Thus, the government invested heavily on various child care facilities, and large-scale canteens to allow them to enter into the workforce. In the propaganda posters, the liberated Soviet women were depicted in various productive roles, although in reality, the gender inequality persisted, and during the whole Soviet era no woman of consequence did emerge at the helms of power.
Jin Meisheng, The seeds have been well selected, the harvest is more bountiful every year, 1964.
Women in the Chinese propaganda posters are also depicted as fully equal to men, but like the Soviet Russia, they appear totally absent in the leadership roles.
Most of the times women jobs are depicted as menial agricultural works, like this poster by
...While men are doing serious industrial jobs, as this poster by Li Zongjin, called "Study the advanced production experience of the Soviet Union, struggle for the industrialization of our country" in 1953 shows. In the early years of the People's Republic of China, the Soviet Union sent many experts to help. Here a Russian industrial expert is shown giving advice. The text at the top is a handwritten announcement of a Russian exhibition.
We won't tolerate anarchy! We'll protect women and children |
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Christmas collection by the Bavarian Red Cross for the armed forces --Weichnachts Sammlung des bayerischen Roten Kreuzes für die Feldgrauen, By Fritz Maison, 1917 |
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Bolshevism brings war, unemployment and famine -- Bolshewismus bringt Krieg, Arbeitslosigkeit und Hungersnot. Vereinigung zur Bekämpfung des Bolshewismus. 1918 |
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Freedom, Peace and Work. Elect the German People's Party in Bavaria, (German Democratic Party) -- Freiheit, Friede, Arbeit. Wählt die Deutsche Volkspartei in Bayern, By Valentin Zietara (1883-1935), |
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World War I Irish Recruiting Poster |
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World War I Irish Recruiting Poster |
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World War I Irish Recruiting Poster |
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Poster encouraging the public to subscribe to the 5th War Loan at the Živnostenská bank in Prague or one of its branches |
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Subscribe to the 8th War Loan |
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Poster for the National War Relief Exhibition in Pozsony. |
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For the country, my eyes, for peace, your money. National Consolidated Loan. |
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“Weapons for death - weapons for life! Subscribe to the Victory Loan. ” 1918. |
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1917 - Italy needs meat, wheat, lard, and sugar. Eat little so that food can go to our people, and army of Italy |
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1917 "Do your Whole Duty!", by Achille Luciano Mauzan |
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The French Infantry in battle, by H. Delaspre |
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For France that Fights |
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After victory, To work! Help us |
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National loan for facilitating the reparation of damages caused by the war. |
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James Montgomery Flagg WWI Posters |
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Berlin or Bust- Pershing in France |
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Fight until Victory |
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"Everything for the war! Suscribe to the 5 1/2% War Loan." |
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Why did you sell your bonds Do not you want to participate in the industrialization of the USSR? - circa 1922-30 |
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After the first world war practically every government resorted to intense propaganda campaigns for capturing the hearts and the minds of the masses. In particular, the extreme right in the form of fascism and the extreme left in the form of communism found posters a potent tool in their propaganda campaigns. Here are two examples from Nazi Germany, and Soviet Russia.
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It is estimated that the U.S. produced more than 200,000 different posters during the second war, more than any other country. Many of the US war posters were designed by the artists who participated in various competitions to produce a design in support of the war. Many corporations produced posters that while supporting the war was also promoting their products. Many corporations were allowed to treat their war propaganda posters as business expenses.
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A 1950 propaganda poster for the Marshall Plan for reconstruction of Europe after WWII.
According to a fascinating article by Steven Heller :
Hitler’s fervent desire to attain propaganda supremacy among nations was a direct result of the German defeat in World War I and his belief that superior allied propaganda trumped Kaiser Wilhelm II’s meager output. Through intensive barrages of posters and other visual media, Britian and America effectively defamed the “Hun” in the eyes of the world, portraying the Kaiser’s military as callous blood-thirsty beasts. The German counterattack was tepid at best. “The Germans were sent into this mighty battle with not so much as a single slogan,” wrote Eugen Hadamovsky, the Nazi propaganda expert and Josef Goebbels’ deputy, in Propaganda and National Power (1933, reprinted by Arno Press in 1972). So when the Nazis came to power, Hitler commissioned a book titled Das Politische Plakat: Eine Psychologische Betrachtung by Erwin Schockel (Franz Eher Verlag, published in 1939), a psychological assesment of English, American, French, Russian and German political posters. It was a handbook for German propagandists and others. ...
Das Politische Plakat was one in a series of textbooks and manuals issued through the Reichspropagandaleitung, based in Munich (Reich Propaganda Office of the Nazi Party, a separate department from the more powerful Berlin-based Ministry of Propaganda and Enlightenment) for use by party members only. Schockel’s message was clear: powerful propagandistic graphics must be simple and memorable.
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Especially you! |
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Hitler and Hindenburg for List 1 |
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Work for Victory. Just Like We Fight for it! |
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Woman in Luftschuk! |
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Adolf Hitler is victory! |
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Give me four years’ time, 1937 |
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January 30 1933-1943 A fight for a win |
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Victory! for the new social order of civilization |
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"Each day of fighting brings us closer to the goal" |
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'Good blood doesn't lie'. |
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The propaganda posters were appeared during the Second World War in Nordic countries. Germany was using intensive propaganda campaigns in the occupied Norway and Denmark particularly to attract volunteers for the German armed forces in the Waffen-SS. In the unoccupied Nordic countries state censorship did not allow propaganda to offend Germany or the Soviet Union. The Finnish Winter War, a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland in 1939–1940, that began with Soviet invasion of Finland on 30 November 1939 (three months after the outbreak of World War II), and ended with the Moscow Peace Treaty on 13 March 1940 became an important motive for propaganda posters.
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Anders Beckman |
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Andra försvarslånet , The second war loan, By I. Axelsson |
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SKJUTSKICKLIGHET ökar värnkraften, Shooting skill increases defense, By Anders Beckman |
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Anders Beckman |
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Anders Beckman |
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Norwegian SS Recruiting Poster -- "Fight for Norway". |
With the coming to power of Hitler in Germany in 1933, the situation of Jews in that country began to deteriorate. As the Nazis applied their racial doctrines, the political and civil rights of German Jews were curtailed. Nazi policies met with some resistance, but more often the response of the German population was one of passivity or acquiescence. Many German Jews reacted with disbelief, but others saw the threat to their continued existence in Germany posed by Hitler and his party.
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"Der ewige Jude" (the eternal Jew). |
In addition to fostering a German “master race” myth with images of beautiful and handsome Aryan-types, National Socialist propagandists also worked to create a counter-image aimed at uniting the country against a common enemy: the Jew. Ironically, before the Nazi seizure of power in 1933, one might have thought Germany the least likely European country to initiate an all-out war against the Jews. In the pre-Third Reich era, Jews had been emancipated, and the Jewish population had largely assimilated into German society, with high rates of Jewish-German intermarriage. Following Hitler’s rise to power, however, the National Socialist dictatorship began to foster and create stereotypes and unflattering images of Jews and other “degenerate” races to promote fear, distrust, and hatred of the supposed “enemies” of the Third Reich.
The Nazi campaign for “cleansing” the fatherland of foreign and “degenerate” cultural influences that began with the banning and burning of books and the publication of anti-Semitic propaganda, soon escalated into government-sanctioned harassment of Jews, the passage of racist legislation prohibiting intermarriage, the forced segregation of Jews into ghettos, and ultimately, deportation to so-called “work camps” during the Second World War.
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"The Scourge of Mankind", Poland, c.1943 |
Here is an interview Hess did with Eli Ungar-Sargon, a documentary filmmaker based in Los Angeles, published im JE School:
EUS: Were you familiar with the history of anti-Semitic imagery associated with mohels when you created Monster Mohel? Did this inform your artistic decision-making?
MH: I first saw some of those cartoons in middle school during lessons about World War II and I have seen other examples since then. But they didn’t influence me one way or the other when creating the art for Foreskin Man #2. While I did not wish to borrow anything from those cartoons, I also felt I would not be doing justice if I held back on portraying Monster Mohel and his goons as evil characters simply because they were Jewish.
EUS: Is it simply coincidence that the hero has blonde hair and blue eyes while the villains have darker complexions?
MH: Foreskin Man’s blond hair, blue eyes, and fair skin reflects my own German heritage. I see absolutely no reason to be ashamed of that. Suggestions in the media that Foreskin Man is a Nazi because of the color of his hair is pure racial stereotyping. And Monster Mohel, Yerik, and Jorah were drawn based on photographs of actual mohels.
Dmitry Stakhievich Orlov, who was known by his artistic name Dmitry Moor revolutionized the art of propaganda poster in the Soviet Russia. His dramatic treatment of class warfare, with haunting contrasts of then and now, enemies versus heroic allies, imperialism against workers' struggles, to which he added a simplistic slogan: Death to World Imperialism.
Many of Moor's and Deni's posters were restricted to black and red. Red could be used to identify revolutionary elements, particularly flags, worker's shirts and peasant blouses. Black was used for the main drawing and as a solid colour for the clothes of capitalist and priest. His work dominated both the Bolshevik Era (1917–1921) and the New Economic Policy (1921–1927).
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For home! For Stalin! For world! For communism! |
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Young builders of communism!Forward, to new successes at work and study! |
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Serve the People! |
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Every day more and more joyful life! |
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May the indestructible friendship and collaboration of the Soviet and Chinese peoples survive and strengthen! |
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Bring up a generation of selfless devotion to the cause of communism! |
“This is a struggle, above all else, for the minds of men.Propaganda is one of the most powerful weapons the Communists have in this struggle. … This propaganda can be overcome by truth—plain, simple, unvarnished—presented by newspapers,radio, newsreels, and other sources that people trust..”President Truman, 1950 in Tuch, 1990, p. 15
When the Cold War came into full form in the late 40s, it was only natural that both the US and the USSR would turn to propaganda war. This was a struggle for people's hearts and minds. In 1948, worried that the American public might become the victim of misinformation produced by its own government, Congress passed the Smith-Mundt Act. This Act outlaws the domestic distribution of U.S. government materials intended for foreign audiences. In 1953, the United States Information Agency (USIA), was founded. It was established as a propaganda agency but it was very careful not to use the word "propaganda" to describe any of its activities.
In order to convince Americans that the US was justified in its new battle, the USIA produced anti-communist propaganda in mass quantities. It became very prevalent very quickly. Anti-communist propaganda could soon be found in every major medium including posters, books, pamphlets, comics, radio, films, and eventually TV.
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"Glory to the Soviet warrior!", by Viktor Ivanov, 1947, |
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"We are safeguarding the peace and happiness of our beloved Motherland!", by V. Koretsky, 1947, |
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"Become a member of DOSFLOT! (the Society for Voluntary Support of the Soviet Navy)", by B.D. Velensky, 1948, |
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"Stalin raised us to be faithful to the Soviet people!", by P. Golub, 1948 |
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"The masterminds of a new war ought to remember the shameful fiasco of their predecessors!", by N. Bulganin, B. Efimov, and N. Dolgorukov, 1948 |
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"Glory to Stalin's eagles!", by E.S. Malotetkov, 1948 |
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"Glory to the Soviet People!", by Viktor Ivanov, 1947 |
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“We are with you, Vietnam!” |
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Soviet Space Program
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Through the worlds and ages |
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With Lenin’s name! |
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Our triumph in space is the hymn to Soviet country! |
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Glory to the conquerors of the universe! |
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Glory to the workers of Soviet science and technology! |
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Glory to the Fatherland of Heroes! |
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Soviet means excellent! |
French Referendum Poster of the 28th September 1958, on the new constitution proposed by General Charles de Gaulle, September 1958
Poster for the No vote in the referendum of 1958, commissioned by the French Communist Party.
The winner of the poster competition, Maria Mileńko from Poznań, Poland
Nevertheless, Ireland passed Lisbon Treaty in second referendum on October 2nd 2009, paving way for EU integration.
The Front National campaigned against the EU. On July 2012, they issued a communique criticizing François Hollande's proposal to go further on the path of European federalism as a direct affront to national independence and sovereignty of France.
After the recent announcement by the socialist of one more step towards a federal Europe, it is now becoming difficult to give a meaning to the wording of Article 3 of the DDLC of 1789: "The principle of all sovereignty resides essentially in the Nation "or to that of Article 3 of the 1958 Constitution, which clearly declares the democratic principle: " National sovereignty belongs to the people who exercise it through their representatives and by means of referendum.'
Ukraine's “Europe without Barriers” public initiative conducted an information campaign: "Choose a better life! " Live without barriers " and "No visa regime! Europe is our home” aimed to explain the benefits and features of visa-free regime in relations with the EU to Ukrainian citizens.
In 2014 the State Institute for Culture of the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with the National Academy of Arts, organized a competition for the design and production of original posters, to be exhibited at “Bulgaria: 10 years in NATO”.
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Georgi Pavlov |
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Georgi Pavlov |
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Georgi Pavlov |
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Nikolay Mladenov |
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Nikolay Mladenov |
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Stoian De4ev |
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Stoian De4ev |
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No American agent will pass through our village! |
After the relative failure of Mao Zedong's "Great Leap Forward" campaign to a modernize China, based on the Stalinist model of industrialization, he and his wife's Jiang Qing initiated, the Cultural Revolution. Millions of mainly urban youths, organized as "Red Guards" were mobilized and sent out into the countryside to propagate Mao's ideology of a new society and to fight the "Four Olds" (old ideas, old culture, old customs and old habits). Posters were the most practical means of propaganda, since most people, particularly in the rural areas, were illiterate, and there were very few radio or television. Posters were easy and cheap to produce. The total output was several billion over a period of 30 to 40 years.
China lodged an official protest against the policy of apartheid in South Africa in September 1950. After the Sino-Soviet conflict, the Chinese began to differentiate themselves from the Soviets with respect to their attitudes towards the oppressed people of colour. According to their propaganda although yellow and black are not the same, but at least they are not as different as the white of the Soviets.
After Mao, regime legitimacy is no longer based on ideology, but rather functionally defined: by the promises of modernization and development; of gaining national strength; of preserving political, economic and social stability; and by establishing both a “socialist democracy” and a “rule of law”. It appears that each Paramount leader must provide hie own political theory.
Marxism-Leninism was first “sinicised”, i.e. adjusted to help tackle China’s practical problems, and then in the 90s it was complemented by the “Deng Xiaoping theory”, which encapsulated the various policy pronouncements that guided the reform process that started in 1978. His Theory was a major departure from Mao Zedong Thought, as Deng insisted that "economic development is the center of party work". Two of the late paramount leader;s famous dicta were: "It always stands to reason to develop the economy faster" and "The economy must cross a new threshold every few years." Deng's development plan resulted in tremendous development, explosive growth and the first traces of a consumer society. At the same time, it created undesirable consequences that affected stability and the potential for the party's continued rule. They include a growing gap between rich and poor; a large disparity between coastal and western China; bureaucratic corruption. Meanwhile, the aim of the regime was no longer a far away “communism” but a not too distant “harmonious society”.
in Deng Xiaoping era Africa and China drifted apart. For many Africans the sudden and dramatic changes of political philosophy were ill-justified. They found Deng's ideological principle of 'Four Modernizations', strengthening the sectors of agriculture, industry, technology and defense, sloganeering and opportunistic. In consequence, China lost much of its credibility in Africa.
Hold high the great banner of Deng Xiaoping Theory to completely advance the cause of building socialism with Chinese characteristics into the 21st century, 1999 | Designer: Design Institute of Wuxi Light Industrial College (无锡轻工大学设计学院) 1999 Usher in a new epoch - Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China Kaichuang xin shiqi -Qingzhu Zhonghua renmin gongheguo chengli wushi zhounian (开创新时期-庆祝中华人民共和国成立五十周年) |
After the death of Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin began working on his own "theoretical" contribution to China's ideological complex. In 2000, his theory of the "three represents" (三个代表,Sange daibiao) was first presented as the nucleus of his Theory. The so-called theory focused on the future role of the Chinese Communist Party as "a faithful representation of the requirements in the development of advanced productive forces in China". This was perhaps an expression of the fact that the Chinese society has rapidly changed and that the Party no longer represents merely the interests of the workers and peasants, but those of the entire newly commercial class dwelling in its larger cities. The 17th Party Congress in 2007 enshrined the formula “Scientific Concept of Development” (科学发展观) into the Party constitution. This signified a stronger focus on sustainable development, taking care for the socially weak and their problems, establishing a social security net in urban and rural areas, etc.
During Hu Jintao chairmanship African attitudes towards China shifted again. China seemed to have the Midas touch in Africa, steadily turning vast natural resource wealth into gold through investments in oil, gas, and mineral projects around the continent. In 2011, Chinese interests invested nearly $16 billion in African mining projects -- a tenfold increase from 2010. At a time when most Western media were retrenching, China’s state-run news media giants were rapidly expanding in the region. They were hoping to bolster China’s image and influence around the globe, particularly in regions rich in the natural resources needed to fuel China’s powerhouse industries and help feed its immense population. “Hostile international powers are strengthening their efforts to Westernize and divide us,” President Hu Jintao wrote in 2012 in a party journal. “We must be aware of the seriousness and complexity of the struggles and take powerful measures to prevent and deal with them.”
In 2012, President Hu Jintao hosted the Fifth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in Beijing, where he highlighted the $165 billion in trade between China and Africa in 2011, a tripling since 2006, making China the continent's largest trading partner. No expense was spared. Advertising was stripped off billboards and replaced with giant pictures of giraffes, lions and elephants roaming the savannah. The walls around building sites was decorated with posters of tribesmen, antelopes and the pyramids. Wanfujing, Beijing's main shopping street, became a safari-land of wooden animals. Everywhere, posters proclaimed: "Africa, the Land of Myth and Miracles." Moreover, Hu Jintao sent a message to the dozens of African heads of state and hundreds of senior African and Chinese government officials in attendance that the commitment behind the Sino-African relationship is consistent, comprehensive, and forged at the highest levels.
Although North Korean earlier propaganda designs could be considered as a mere copy of Soviet Russian socialist realism, and Mao era's Chinese propaganda, they have been quite avant-garde and bold in recent times. The country's socialist realist art is largely informed by her traditional Korean ink Painting, 한국의 전통회화 Chosŏnhwa painting, admired by its leader Kim Il Sung (Kim Chŏng Il), who considered it as the quintessence of North Korean art, and pronounced it as the most pertinent style for the post-revolutionary North Korean art. North Korean artists are supposed to be in the ideological forefront of the revolution, and must vehemently defend the leadership and their cause. Their training includes a combination of technical and ideological courses, which emphasizes the socialist realism as the only acceptable style.
Nevertheless, the artists have experimented with a wide range of expressionistic techniques within the confines of socialist realism. What renders a work of art "socialist realist" is the correct ideological interpretation of social reality in a manner that would be appealing to the people. To attain such an station the artist must toil with the proletariat, and share in their life experiences. The artist should comprehend at its core the diversity and complexity of life represented by its material form but more importantly by its humanistic essence defined as seed theory, 종자론. Artwork is judged not just on its aesthetic/technical merits (예술성), but more importantly on its ideological quality (사상성). A masterpiece is produced when a balance is found between aesthetical and ideological quality.
Kim Jong Il’s Misullon 미술론 (Treatise on Art, 1992), which begins by describing the relationship between humans and art describes the function and meaning of art in North Korea;
The art form that most accurately reflects the demands of the time and serves the people and their aspirations is juche art. Juche art is a revolutionary and people oriented art form that is national in form with socialist content. It is also a new form of art that perfectly fuses ideology and aesthetics. Materializing juche ideology in art best fits the people’s emotions and thoughts and acts as the basis for a new art form that serves our revolution...Beauty is tied to the autonomous desires and aspirations of humans and the emotional responsiveness a depiction evokes from a person... Emotion comes into force and can be experienced only when an artwork is based on the aspirations and desires of humans… A beautiful depiction of an object that is felt through an individual’s aesthetic emotion cannot exist without the active endeavor to understand and reform the world and oneself… Beauty occurs when a depiction of an object that meets the human desire and aspiration for autonomy is emotionally feltThese characteristics have formed the main framework for North Korean poster art. Kim Jong Il considered posters as important tools in the mobilization of the masses, they have to have an instantaneous impact on the viewers’ understanding and their desire to act upon this understanding. Their message has to be accessible, clear and direct; informative and explanatory, as well as exhortative. The link between contemplation and action is crucial. A poster artist is ultimately an agitator, who, familiar with the party line and endowed with a sharp analysis and judgment of reality produces a rousing depiction of policies and initiatives that stimulate the people into action. Only if the poster appeals to the ideological and aesthetic sentiments of the people will it succeed in truly rousing the people. Kim Jong Il refers to poster painters as standard bearers of their times, submerged in the overwhelming reality and in touch with the revolutionary zeal and creative power of the people, leading the way from a position among the people.
The U.S. is truly an axis of evil | Wicked Man |
When provoking a war of aggression, we will hit back, beginning with the U.S. | When we say we will, we will. We do not talk idly. |
Depths of Hatred
On October 21st 2007, Swiss Justice Minister Christoph Blocher’s SVP party won 29% of the vote on the back of an election campaign dominated by an overtly racist anti-immigration campaign. The SVP’s election propaganda included a poster with three white sheep kicking a black sheep out of the country with the slogan ‘More Security!’.
The propagandists boasted that:
The success of the Swiss People's Party - and particularly its iconic posters - is driving the Establishment crazy in Switzerland. The searing power of these images - now regarded as among the great poster art of all time, and being sold in auction houses alongside the work of Toulouse-Lautrec - may well have played a significant role in altering the political dynamic in Switzerland.
Start Mass Emigration.
The designer Alexander Segert and his advertising agency Werbeagentur GOAL AG, have been apparently proud of their bizarre posters!
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Poster against Free Movement of Bulgarians and Romanians -2008 |
The advocates for these posters believed:
A poster needs to reduce and compress - only in that way can it transmit its messages. The SVP has understood this very well: with conciseness in word and image - and statement - they achieved the optimal effect. Intellectual messages overburden a poster and cannot be deciphered quickly. The SVP advertising also stands out in the crowd by using illustrations instead of the widespread photo aesthetic. It uses the language of comics, a popular, generally understood visual language. This works perfectly through simplification of colour and form.Iranian Revolution and War Posters
The Iran-Iraq War (1980-88) represents one of the 20th century's most devastating conflicts, characterized by chemical warfare, human-wave attacks, and a desperate struggle for national survival. For the nascent Islamic Republic of Iran, emerging from the transformative 1979 Revolution, the war presented an existential crisis as Saddam Hussein's forces threatened its borders. The revolutionary state faced the monumental task of mobilizing a population fractured by recent political upheaval and the dismantling of the Shah's military infrastructure.
In this context, visual propaganda, particularly through posters, became a crucial tool for national mobilization. The Iranian government's poster campaign operated on multiple levels: as a recruitment tool, an ideological instrument, and a means of constructing a new national narrative. These posters merged traditional Persian artistic elements with revolutionary Islamic imagery, creating a unique visual language that spoke to both religious and nationalist sentiments.
The iconography of these posters was rich and multifaceted. Common motifs included:
- The martyred soldier, often depicted with a luminous halo or ascending to heaven, drawing on Shi'a traditions of martyrdom
- Blood-red tulips, a traditional Persian symbol of martyrdom, emerging from battlefields
- The Dome of the Rock and other religious sites, connecting the war to broader Islamic causes
- Imagery of Imam Hussein and the Battle of Karbala, linking contemporary sacrifice to sacred history
- Ordinary citizens transformed into warriors, emphasizing the people's army concept
- Women in chadors wielding weapons or supporting the war effort, highlighting universal participation
- Children as symbols of innocence and future generations worth defending
The posters utilized a distinctive color palette dominated by red, black, and green – colors with both Islamic and revolutionary significance. Text often integrated Quranic verses with revolutionary slogans, creating a powerful synthesis of religious and political messaging. The aesthetic style frequently combined photographic elements with graphic art, creating striking hybrid images that resonated with both traditional and modern sensibilities.
Beyond military recruitment, these posters served broader social functions. They helped construct a new national identity that merged revolutionary Islamic values with Iranian patriotism. The concept of "Holy Defense" (Defa-e Moqaddas) became central to this narrative, presenting the war not merely as territorial defense but as a sacred struggle against forces of evil, frequently portrayed as Western-backed aggression.
The posters also addressed domestic challenges, promoting social cohesion and economic sacrifice. Images of families sending sons to war, workers maintaining production, and civilians participating in civil defense created a visual narrative of total national mobilization. This imagery helped normalize the concept of martyrdom and sacrifice across all sectors of society.
Particularly noteworthy was the evolution of poster design throughout the war. Early posters emphasized revolutionary fervor and religious symbolism, while later works incorporated more sophisticated psychological elements addressing war weariness and the need for continued resistance. The artwork often drew inspiration from both Western propaganda techniques and traditional Persian miniature painting, creating a unique hybrid style that characterized the era.
The legacy of these posters extends beyond their immediate wartime context. They helped establish a visual vocabulary that continues to influence Iranian political art and state messaging. Their impact on Iranian visual culture demonstrates how effectively the Islamic Republic used artistic expression to forge national unity in a time of extreme crisis, while simultaneously establishing new paradigms of religious and political imagery that remain influential in contemporary Iran.
These posters stand as powerful historical documents, revealing how visual culture can be mobilized to shape public consciousness and national identity during periods of revolutionary change and external threat. They represent a unique fusion of religious, nationalist, and revolutionary elements that characterized Iran's response to one of its most challenging historical moments.
Go to the next chapter; Chapter 30 -- Posters and Cult of Persnality
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