Students in Paris occupied the Sorbonne on May 3, 1968, sparking a cultural and social revolution that changed French society in a short time. It was not a political revolution but a cultural and social one that affected Paris and the provinces.
In the turbulent days of May 1968 in Paris, a group of artists calling themselves the Atelier Populaire created posters that were vital in spreading the call to unite students and workers. Immediate pressures fed the propaganda of the French revolt. The day-by-day events – the disruption of classes at Nanterre University led by Daniel Cohn-Bendit, the supporting student demonstrations in Paris, the police invasion of the Sorbonne and its occupation by students, the barricades, and the government’s reaction and referendum – these were the events that produced the newspaper stories and also these spontaneous, passionate comments in the poster medium.
Creating the Posters
The process of making posters was rapid and direct: “Graffiti sustained a relentless match of squash against the communique of the official radio and TV. Slogans were picked off the walls and brought to limited printing facilities of l’Ecole des Arts Decoratifs and L’Ecole des Beaux-Arts, rebaptised Atelier Populaire by the students entrenched there. Students and sympathetic workers encaptured by the spirit of community – experimented with participatory design, discussing and choosing together the poster subjects and images. Anonymity was not only a consequence of this working method but also an understandable necessity.
The first posters were printed by whatever means were at hand. As the movement became more organised and more people became involved, silkscreen workshops were established. When need overcame production, the ateliers were joined by the workshops of the Faculties of Science and Psychology, as well as by the Committees of Revolutionary Action operating in each neighbourhood, which resorted to every available printing medium. – blueprint and office duplicating machines included. In solidarity, Paris’s international artistic community contributed posters which, although more accomplished graphically, lacked the punch of the students’ simplicity.
Be Young and Shut Up Poster
This phrase encapsulated the frustration and anger felt by many young people at the time, tired of being silenced by an older generation they saw as out of touch. The protests ultimately led to widespread social and political change in France, with many reforms being implemented in response to the protesters’ demands. The poster has become an iconic image of this period in French history and is still widely recognized today as a symbol of youth activism and rebellion. Its message continues to resonate with young people worldwide fighting for their voices to be heard and their rights to be respected.
More on Design History
-
Neon Lighting – Dictionary – Design Term
Neon Lighting. Semiflexible, hollow tubes of clear acrylic with small bulbs inside that can be connected to light up all at once or sequentially to produce a “chasing” effect. It’s also known as disco lighting, and it’s given homeowners new illumination alternatives. Lights designers consider neon lighting to be an art form.Read More →
-
Mona Lisa Clock – Antique of the Future
Mona Lisa Clock – Antique of the Future which features a close-up photo of the famous face.Read More →
-
Paris: May 1968 Posters of the Student Revolt
In the turbulent days of May 1968 in Paris, a group of artists calling themselves the Atelier Populaire created posters that were vital in spreading the call to unite student and workers. The propaganda of the French revolt was fed by immediate pressures. The day by day events – the disruption of classes at Nanterre…
-
A Quaich: An Early Form of the Loving Cup
The quaich or quaigh is a type of Scottish drinking vessel. It is shallow and uncovered, similar to a porringer.Read More →
-
“International Style” Architecture of the Modern Movement
Alfred H. Barr Jr. coined the term in 1931 in conjunction with Philip Johnson and Henry-Russell Hitchcock’s 1932 “Modern Architecture: International Exhibition” (along with the accompanying book International Style: Architecture Since 1922) at the New York Museum of Modern Art, where Barr was director.Read More →
-
Jugendstil: An Exploration of an Artistic Style
Jugendstil, an artistic style that originated around the mid-1890s in Germany and persisted throughout the first decade of the 20th century. READ MORRead More →
-
Mission Furniture – Design Dictionary Term
The term mission furniture was first popularized by Joseph P. McHugh of New York, a furniture manufacturer and retailer. The word mission references the Spanish missions throughout colonial California. The style became increasingly popular following the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo.Read More →
-
Taylorism Search for Industrial Efficiency or Robotism?
His 1911 book Principles of Scientific Management outlined these concepts, and they have influenced various aspects of design, including labour-saving kitchens and more ergonomic household equipment. These included the writings of fellow American Christine Frederick, who published Scientific Management in the Home in 1915, and Lillian Gilbreth’s assessments of domestic efficiency for the Brooklyn Gas…
-
Dada Art Movement – Making Mischief
As a designer, I am passionate about the history of art and their influence on ‘visual design.’ In art history, Dada is the artistic movement that preceded Surrealism, it began in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1916 by a group of mostly painters and painters. Dada artworks challenged the preconceived notions of what art meant. Many Dadaists felt…
-
Fashion Design from 1900 to 1920 – Focus on Freedom
Fashion Design from 1900 to 1920 – Focus on Freedom. Newfound political independence came newfound fashion freedom. READ MORERead More →
-
Cassone – the marriage chest
A cassone is a big decorated chest that was made in Italy between the 14th and 16th centuries. In 1472, a Florentine merchant married a young noblewoman named Vaggia Nerli. Cassoni were put on display in the most important and well-furnished room in the palace.Read More →
-
Anchor Blocks – 19th Century construction toy
Anchor Blocks were a German system of building blocks that were popular as a children’s construction toy in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, notably in Europe. Dr F. Ad. Richter in Rudolstadt, Germany, began developing and manufacturing the system in 1879. The concept was based on the FROEBEL block system, which significantly impacted…
-
Ideal Home Exhibition (est. 1908) Aspirational British Design
The Daily Mail newspaper sponsored the Ideal Home Exhibition (from 1908). These shows provide an insight into popular taste and aspiration across all facets of domestic design and organisation in Britain.Read More →
-
Design History – 40s & 50s the age of the Graphic Designer
The 1940s and 1950s the age of the Graphic Designer. Designers, illustrators, and artists used their talents to disseminate information.Read More →
-
Japan Advertising Artists Club pioneer of Japanese Graphic Design
In the 1960s, the JAAC’s philosophy came under fire for being overly reliant on exhibitions as a platform for innovative ideas. Furthermore, during the turbulent 1960s, a perceived emphasis on aesthetics at the expense of social significance, combined with allegations of elitism, led to the organisation’s disbandment in 1970.Read More →
-
The Chevron pattern – a Popular motif for Designers
The word chevron comes from the French word chevron, which means rafter or gable. Although there is no definition to prevent freedom in its shape, the chevron’s angle is most commonly between 60 and 70 degrees. Read More →
-
Honiton Lace the beauty of complex patterns
Honiton lace is a type of bobbin lace made in Honiton, Devon, in the United Kingdom. Its ornate motifs and complex patterns are created separately, before being sewn into a net ground. Common motifs include daisies, roses, shamrocks, ivy leaves, lilies, camellias, convolvulus, poppies, briony, antwerp diamonds, trefoils, ferns, and acorns.Read More →
-
Design in Scandinavia travelling exhibition, 1954 – 1957
Brilliant examples of contemporary home furnishings were shown from Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden and exposed Americans to Scandinavian design, inspiring a shift towards mid-century design.Read More →
-
Jaeger 🏴 clothes are not just fashion but function & lifestyle
During the twentieth century, a movement arose that advocated for clothing to be worn as part of a sensible, healthy lifestyle rather than only for fashion. These concepts sprang from the work of nineteenth-century fashion reformers, in the same way, that English writer Edward Carpenter popularised the open-toed leather sandal for men. Read More →
-
Post-Impressionism – a concise guide
Post-Impressionism (sometimes called Postimpressionism) was a significant French art trend that evolved between 1886 and 1905. Paul Cézanne, Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, and Georges Seurat led the movement. Post-Impressionism was a reaction to Impressionism’s naturalistic light and colour. Post-Impressionism covers the work of Les Nabis, Neo-Impressionism, Symbolism, Cloisonnism, the Pont-Aven School, and Synthetism.Read More…
You may also be interested in
The iconic film posters of Bill Gold – Encyclopedia of Design
One of America’s most successful poster designers began his career at the age of 20, after graduating from an illustration and design course at Pratt Institute . Gold got a job in the poster department in the New York office of Warner Bros , and his first two projects were for the hugely successful 1942 films Yankee Doodle Dandy and Casablanca (both won various Academy Awards).
Manuel Orazi and notable art nouveau posters – Encyclopedia of Design
Manuel Orazi was a Spanish illustrator, a lithographer who contributed notable Art Nouveau posters of the last quarter of the nineteenth century. He designed the 1884 Théodora poster for Sarah Bernhardt with Gorguet. Others of his posters were for Peugeot bicycles, the opera Aben Hamet and, in the form of an old torn manuscript, for the opera Thaïs by Jules Massenet.