Arty Bunny

"They forget that Jesus was politically incorrect from beginning to end"

I hope that you will find my unique Easter cards interesting... even if they are not politically correct...

It DOES matter!

On Saturday I was lucky enough to see an exhibition „Music and Liberation” in one of the independent galleries – Space Station Sixty-Five in London. It was the last day of this exposition so I was more than happy that I had a chance to go there and learn more about women’s liberation music-making in the UK in the 70s and 80s.

The exhibition showed how feminists used music as an activist tool to fight with the social and political system regarding stereotypes of women’s social roles, which were mostly based on being a housewife. For me, a person behind the Iron Curtain, this piece of the British history was very interesting. In Poland during this time people, regardless of their gender, fought with communism, therefore this particular kind of movement wasn’t very popular there.

Different kinds of exhibits from the private collections were showcased in the Space Station Sixty-Five, these included the posters, songbooks, t-shirts, instruments, books, notes, diaries, pictures, fliers, button badges and of course the music which was played. It was an unique event, which gave me an opportunity to touch the piece of history which let us – women – be at the stage we are now.

Many times we completely forget that we can live, work and enjoy our lives only because somebody fought for these before. Without this kind of movement, women could still only sing “The lament of housewives”. It is the same with regards to every single part of our lives, including the human, worker or children’s rights.

In all decades and centuries a lot of activists struggled against the reality to create better lives for them, their children, their loved ones, and for humans generally. The system or even other members of the public, who didn’t see and understand the sense of these fights tried to stop or ban them, but the fighters were undeterred. They heard thousands of times: “just give it up; it doesn’t matter as you are unable to change anything!” And maybe they suffered too much but it was worthy enough as they built better conditions for us.

Therefore, even if we feel sometimes that we are powerless, we shouldn’t give our beliefs up as it does matter if we struggle for them or not. Even if our actions aren’t spectacular and don’t make any difference now, they create the future.

I read a story once. It was about a man who walked on the seaside during a low tide and threw jellyfish, which were lying on the sea shore, into the water. He met another man who doubtfully looked at him and said: “Man, what are you doing? There are thousands of jellyfish here! You are unable to rescue them all so give this stupid idea up as it doesn’t matter!” The first man patiently picked up the next jellyfish and said whilst throwing it into the sea: “It DOES matter for this one”.  

Do we have great minds to discuss this idea?

Great minds discuss ideas
Average minds discuss events
Small minds discuss people 
[Eleanor Roosevelt]

Is it true? I do not agree! What about discussing ideas by showing people? That has happened during the last 3 months at the New Walk Museum and Art Gallery in Leicester. Two of the temporary exhibitions, pictures made by August Sander as well as graphics by George Grosz, have showed the idea of discussing people by introducing them as they really looked, without polishing the reality. 

  

Sander’s work focused on the portraits of “People of the 20th Century” so he photographed representatives of every class, profession and sex. We can look into the eyes of farmers, cooks, industrialists, proletarian intellectuals, politicians, socialists, philosophers, nuns, priests, nurses, doctors, secretaries, students, soldiers, policemen, prisoners, artists and actresses. The photos show every single wrinkle on their faces as well as the texture of the material in their clothes, which makes the pictures expressive and real. I have the same feeling whilst looking at his studies of hands. I was very close to touching them, trying to shake them or just handle them gently.

Grosz drew and painted at a similar time as Sander photographed, but he not only showed reality but also emphasized the weakness of the German society from the beginning of the 20th century. Most of his ironic graphics were destroyed by the government as they cynically pointed out the cruelty caused by the politicians of the day. The ones which have remained judge the political system and gaps in the law. They also show society without being prudish.  

Both artists keep the portrayed people as real as they were. For the art should be meaningful which means it should show the truth. “By sight and observation and thought, with the help of the camera, and the addition of the date of the year, we can hold fast the history of the world” said Sander. 

Sander’s and Grosz’s work holds the story which the world tries to tell us. Do we have great minds to discuss this idea?