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Category Archives: Uncategorized

65 Years Ago, Paris

French photographer André Zucca was hired by the Nazi propaganda magazine Signal to capture scenes of Paris flourishing under German occupation. Joseph Goebbels decreed that the French capital should be “animated and gay” to show off the “new Europe.” Zucca was provided with rare Agfacolor film. His are the only known color photographs of occupied […]

Flags

Flag, 1954-1955 White Flag, 1955 Three Flags, 1958 “I make what it pleases me to make… I have no ideas about what the paintings imply about the world. I don’t think that’s a painter’s business. He just paints paintings without a conscious reason. I intuitively paint flags.” —Jasper Johns

RIP MJ

30 Years Ago, Tehran

Magnum Photos: Pre-Khomeini Iran

East German Design

East German By Design: The ABCs of Communist Consumer Culture, Spiegel Online

1 Year Ago, Coney Island

Photos by Piotr Redlinski

Wenceslas Square or Tiananmen?

There can be no question that the June 12, 2009, Iranian presidential election was stolen. Dissident employees of the Interior Ministry, which is under the control of President Ahmadinejad and is responsible for the mechanics of the polling and counting of votes, have reportedly issued an open letter saying as much. Government polls (one conducted […]

Harlem, 1970

The neighborhood was like a rundown version of Paris in which life was lived outside, on the streets, amid the fading glory of its grand boulevards. The Harlem That Was by Camilo José Vergara, Slate Harlem, 1970-2009: Photographs by Camilo José Vergara New York Historical Society April 30—July 12, 2009

20 Years Ago, Beijing

Scelere velandum est scelus. One crime must be concealed by another. —Seneca On June 4, 1989, seven weeks of peaceful protest were ended with tanks and guns. The world watched as soldiers fired on students, workers, and ordinary citizens demonstrating for democracy and human rights. Many were shot in the back as they fled. The […]

Opinel Knife

The Opinel knife was invented by Joseph Opinel in about 1895. In 1565 King Charles IX of France had ordered every master knife-maker to place an emblem on his products to guarantee their origin and quality. Respecting this tradition, Joseph Opinel chose as his emblem “The Crowned Hand”. In 1985 Opinel was recognised as one […]