Picturing Socialism

Name: Picturing Socialism
Brand: Allen & Unwin
SKU: 9781350428027
Price: 65.99 NZD
Availability: InStock

Public Art and Design in East Germany

By J. R. Jenkins

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Summary

Picturing Socialism presents a vibrant history of public art in the former German Democratic Republic, revealing a rich but little-known cultural legacy. The book explores how art and design in East Germany's urban spaces shaped and reflected the republic's socialist self-identity. It examines the dynamic tensions between socialist realism and modernism amid Cold War pressures, highlighting art's role as a battleground for ideology within architecture and public space. This timely study also addresses the precarious survival of East German public art post-unification.
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Format: Paperback / softback

$65⁹⁹

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Picturing Socialism

$65⁹⁹

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book is ideal for readers interested in Cold War history, socialist culture, public art, and architectural heritage, especially those with a focus on East Germany and European arts and culture.

The first study to investigate the meaning and function of works of art and design in East German public spaces.

The first study to investigate the meaning and function of works of art and design in East German public spaces.

Description

This vibrant history of the former German Democratic Republic’s public art reveals a barely known but visually and theoretically rich cultural legacy. Picturing Socialism shows how works of art and design in the urban spaces of East Germany were the site of a sustained struggle between practitioners, critics, and political leaders.

This was not the oft-assumed conflict between artistic freedom and political dogma; at stake was the self-identity of the republic as socialist. Art and its relationship to architecture functioned as the testing ground for East Germany’s relationship to socialist realism and modernism against the backdrop of Cold War competition from the neighbouring Federal Republic.

Picturing Socialism makes a timely contribution to the recent groundswell of interest in the legacy of East Germany’s art and architecture, illuminating and elucidating the public art which has been lost or remains under threat since unification in 1990.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Critics praise Picturing Socialism for its lavish illustrations and insightful analysis of East German public art and architecture. Harriet Atkinson highlights its fascinating visual record and in-depth interviews, calling it an important and timely contribution to Cold War history and politics. Reviews note the book’s cogent scholarship and suggest it will become a benchmark work in the study of GDR public art.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781350428027

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 16 November 2023

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Bloomsbury Visual Arts

Illustration: 58 bw illus and 8pp colour plate section

Audience: Tertiary education

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 18.0mm

Width: 156.0mm

Height: 232.0mm

Weight: 600g

Pages: 264

Collections

Arts & Culture J. R. Jenkins Non-Fiction

About the Author

J.R. Jenkins is a design historian specializing in the design culture of the former German Democratic Republic. She writes widely on design, with contributions in books such as Design, History and Time (Bloomsbury, 2019) and journals such as Design Issues. She teaches Design Contexts at Falmouth University, UK.