With Feeling and Reason and the Independent Women's Union
Poster
1990 (designed and printed)
1990 (designed and printed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This is a campaign poster issued by the German Independent Women's Union for the first and only free parliamentary elections ('Volkskammerwahl') in East Germany (GDR-German Democratic Republic) on the 18th of March 1990. The elections took place between the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and the reunification of East and West Germany.
The graphic designer Anke Feuchtenberger used a radical design vocabulary for this poster formed out of illustration and comic elements. She engagedl elements originating out of the GDR tradition of poster drawing, which up until then were solely used for poster advertising in a cultural context. Feuchtenberger was the only designer to infuse this design tradition with a political content and the poster goes far beyond the propaganda platitudes of the designers employed by the Social Unity Party (the ruling party in the communist GDR).
The posters of the Independent Women's Union can be seen as an attenpt to create a stand-alone, new and free kind of political poster for the GDR.
This poster depicts a Noah's Ark for women, symbolising family welfare. The text states: 'Mit Gefühl und Verstand und dem Unabhänigen Frauenverband', meaning 'With feeling and reason and the Independent Women's Union'.
The German Independent Women's Union was founded on the 17th of February 1990. The Union was at first a reservoir for different women's movements, with the intention of distancing themselves from the state-directed 'Demokratischer Frauenbund Deutschlands' ('Democratic Women's Federation of Germany'). In September 1991 the Union changed into an association (society), which eventually disbanded in 1998. The political impact of the party remained limited, nevertheless, some of their election posters are of particular importance.
The graphic designer Anke Feuchtenberger used a radical design vocabulary for this poster formed out of illustration and comic elements. She engagedl elements originating out of the GDR tradition of poster drawing, which up until then were solely used for poster advertising in a cultural context. Feuchtenberger was the only designer to infuse this design tradition with a political content and the poster goes far beyond the propaganda platitudes of the designers employed by the Social Unity Party (the ruling party in the communist GDR).
The posters of the Independent Women's Union can be seen as an attenpt to create a stand-alone, new and free kind of political poster for the GDR.
This poster depicts a Noah's Ark for women, symbolising family welfare. The text states: 'Mit Gefühl und Verstand und dem Unabhänigen Frauenverband', meaning 'With feeling and reason and the Independent Women's Union'.
The German Independent Women's Union was founded on the 17th of February 1990. The Union was at first a reservoir for different women's movements, with the intention of distancing themselves from the state-directed 'Demokratischer Frauenbund Deutschlands' ('Democratic Women's Federation of Germany'). In September 1991 the Union changed into an association (society), which eventually disbanded in 1998. The political impact of the party remained limited, nevertheless, some of their election posters are of particular importance.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Titles |
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| Materials and techniques | Lithograph printed in black, pink and purple on paper |
| Brief description | Poster, lithograph, 'With Feeling and Reason and the Independent Women's Union', issued by the Independent Women's Union for parliamentary elections in the GDR, by Anke Feuchtenberger, GDR, 1990 |
| Physical description | Depicts a 'Noah's ark' for women, a dove flying overhead and two nude women holding a baby on the right side of the ark, accompanied by two animals and a plant. Printed in black, purple and pink on a white ground. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | Mit gefühl und verstand und dem unabhängigen Frauen Verband |
| Object history | This object is part of a group of graphics inspired by the pro-democracy movement in East Germany in 1989 and 1990, which saw popular demonstrations result in the overthrow of the Communist government, led by Egon Krenz, culminatinng in the free elections of 18 March 1990. All the material, which covers a wide range of the political parties and movements that took part in these events, was gathered by V&A Curator Margaret Timmers in East Berlin in the week preceding these elections. |
| Historical context | Poster issued by the Unabhangigen Frauen Verband [Independent Women's Union] for the East German election of 18 March 1990 using the symbol of Noah's Ark for family welfare. |
| Production | Poster issued by the Unabhängigen Frauen Verband [Independent Women's Union] for the East German election of 18 March 1990 |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This is a campaign poster issued by the German Independent Women's Union for the first and only free parliamentary elections ('Volkskammerwahl') in East Germany (GDR-German Democratic Republic) on the 18th of March 1990. The elections took place between the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and the reunification of East and West Germany. The graphic designer Anke Feuchtenberger used a radical design vocabulary for this poster formed out of illustration and comic elements. She engagedl elements originating out of the GDR tradition of poster drawing, which up until then were solely used for poster advertising in a cultural context. Feuchtenberger was the only designer to infuse this design tradition with a political content and the poster goes far beyond the propaganda platitudes of the designers employed by the Social Unity Party (the ruling party in the communist GDR). The posters of the Independent Women's Union can be seen as an attenpt to create a stand-alone, new and free kind of political poster for the GDR. This poster depicts a Noah's Ark for women, symbolising family welfare. The text states: 'Mit Gefühl und Verstand und dem Unabhänigen Frauenverband', meaning 'With feeling and reason and the Independent Women's Union'. The German Independent Women's Union was founded on the 17th of February 1990. The Union was at first a reservoir for different women's movements, with the intention of distancing themselves from the state-directed 'Demokratischer Frauenbund Deutschlands' ('Democratic Women's Federation of Germany'). In September 1991 the Union changed into an association (society), which eventually disbanded in 1998. The political impact of the party remained limited, nevertheless, some of their election posters are of particular importance. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.2096-1990 |
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| Record created | January 31, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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