Antipolitics in central European art : reticence as dissidence under post-totalitarian rule, 1956-1989

In this bold book Klara Kemp-Welch offers a compelling account of the way that artists in Central Europe embraced alternative forms of action-based practice, just as their dissident counterparts were formulating alternative models of politics - in particular an `antipolitics' of self organization. Spanning a period punctuated by landmark events - the crushing of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, the invasion of Czechoslavakia in 1968 and the birth of the Polish Solidarity movement - while presenting powerful new readings of six key artists, Antipolitics in Central European Art anchors art historical analysis to a robust historical framework. Its rich illustrations reveal how those artists struggled to enjoy freedom of expression and reclaim public space inside a political system where both seemed impossible.