Wolfgang Tillmans’ anti-Brexit poster campaign is to get a new lease of life. Jop van Bennekom and Gert Jonkers, the founders of Fantastic Man magazine are using the original artworks with slogans translated in to Dutch, German and French to promote a pro-EU message during the forthcoming elections in The Netherlands, Germany and France. The duo, in collaboration with Foam Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam, Het Nieuwe Instituut, Witte de With Centre for Contemporary Art, De Balie and Cookies, plan further translations into all 24 official languages of the EU. The new posters, along with the original ones in English, are available for free download (here).
On announcing the project they state:
‘The EU is not a faceless machine but the representation of 508 million people. While surely there are still many things to be improved, the core belief in this institution has secured the longest period of inter-European peace and cooperation in history. A democratic conversation between 28 member states is tedious – but it ensures a steady dialog, a constant weighing of the many different demands involved in making each single decision. These processes foster safety and stability, and allow us to call a whole continent something which would otherwise be much smaller: home.’
‘With an increasing anti-European sentiment it becomes ever so more important to speak out and reinstate the position we believe in. Enraged nationalism is slowly becoming normalised in today’s political discourse by far-right politicians. It spews hate and anxiety. Cooperation not confrontation. Protect the EU.’
7 March 2017
