[A Sip of Books] 'Refugees, Climate Change, Feminism, Racism, LGBTQ, Opposition to War and Nuclear Weapons'

Some sentences encapsulate the entire content of the book itself, while others instantly reach the reader's heart, creating a connection with the book. We present meaningful sentences excerpted from the book. - Editor's note

This is a large pictorial book containing posters and explanations on seven major global issues such as ‘refugees, climate change, feminism, racism, LGBTQ, war and opposition to nuclear weapons.’ From the suffrage movement in the early 20th century, through the turbulent 1960s and 1970s, to various modern resistance protests based on social media, the journey of political and social activism worldwide unfolds through moving texts and illustrations. All 140 images were selected jointly by Amnesty International and artist Jo Lipon. It vividly reveals how artists from different regions and eras fought on behalf of the marginalized, willingly became weapons, and how scattered voices were united into symbolic works.

The power of a work is completed by the audience who views it. Art does not command; it is like a bridge that induces participation, and its meaning is completed through the life experiences and emotions of the audience. Therefore, artworks hold value as communal acts completed through participation rather than closed particularity, and the process is fulfilled according to the freedom of not only oneself but also others. Thus, artworks are essentially very political acts of approval and participation.

_ p. 9, Foreword - Anish Kapoor

The subject of the photograph is a Bosnian Muslim refugee who lived in the UK for four years to escape the war and has returned home. His return is expressed not with a joyful appearance but as a desolate black-and-white image suggesting loss. The man, standing alone holding a few pieces of luggage, gazes somewhere off-screen. His shadow is cast on the rain-soaked road, and behind him stands a house still under construction. The phrase “Bosnia and Herzegovina, the sanctuary of Europe. Who is living in our house? The hardships of refugees who lost their homes” catches the eye. This poster was produced alongside the 1997 Amnesty International report Bosnia and Herzegovina: “Who is living in our house?” Why refugees who lost their homes cannot safely return home.

_ p. 22, Refugees and Immigrants, For a Society Where All Global Citizens Live Together

The typical joke at the time was as follows: “Women under capitalism are not free because they do not get the opportunity to work. Women must stay at home, go shopping, cook, do housework, or take care of children. But women under socialism are free. They can work all day, and after work, they go home, shop, cook, do housework, or take care of children.” The poster text by Boris Nikolaevich Daikin reads: “March 8 is the day when working women resist the kitchen slavery. Say ‘No!’ to repetitive housework and oppression.” The illustration on the poster shows a woman reaching out her hand to another woman buried under a pile of kitchenware such as pots and pans.

_ p. 45, For Women's Liberation, Freedom, and Participation

Art of Resistance | Written by Jo Lipon | Translated by Kim Kyung-ae | Cine21 Books | 184 pages | 35,000 KRW

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.