The Student Movement of May 1968 and the Fine Art Students1

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THE STUDENT MOVEMENT OF MAY 1968 AND THE FINE ART STUDENTS1

aMir Esbati

It has been a year and a few months since the height of the people’s uprising. We have been through months where each day incarnated the meaning of “movement” and “change.” And the most obvious visual representation of such movements and changes has been refl ected on the walls of our cities. The walls in the cities formed an exhibition, which owed its pre sentation to the constant presence of the people within [those walls]. The cities’ walls became a visual crystallization of the people’s beliefs and opinions and the strategy behind their movement; news announcements, calling for demonstrations, expressing hatred toward . . . , expressing fondness toward . . . , the glorifi cation of martyrs, strike announcements, commemorating events, etc. All these, embodied in a slogan, a poem, or an image, represented the movement of a nation forming a public communication in its most effi cient and most extensive shape; a communication that—at least in our country—had never, and in no form, achieved such a scale. Yes, people represented themselves and “real life.” They trans formed their clean and cheerful yet extremely depressing and suffocat

1 “Jonbesheh Da¯neshjouyi May 1968 va Da¯neshjouya¯neh Honarha¯yeh ziba¯,” Ka¯r va Honar (Dey 1358): 6–9.

122 © 2017 artmargins and the massachusetts Institute of technology doi:10.1162/artm_a_00193 should study the life in such societies, and their form of government, of government, form their and societies, such in life the study should One of art. type to this led that factors the one understand pose, should pur journey.To this on this off set achieve have already that societies in art of such examples study should another—one by of one individual of exploitation sort any endeavor the to eliminate and on equality based society a humane reaching evolution, finally social ofnation classes, elimi the in society, conflicts class irreconcilable the revealing society, of pains of the recognition the toward point step, would at every that, of people’s and becomelives part would that of art—one kind creative futility. to such subject been have always education art and therefore “art” and demands, real and tangible masses’ the met never has content Iran in standards. [aesthetic] crucial some lacking was product people’sreason, the final etc.), foryet some design, poster expression, (visual fields tional educa in who specialized resource artists for the educational ductive pro and rich extremely an provided people the before— explained movement—as of simple this honest yet expression the by and of it. aspect every to study art involved with of those responsibility essential hence and it the is understandings, tural cul and artistic our in chapter anew have started that etc., techniques, or nonadvanced advanced with made vague, and clear beautiful, and [a]ugly posters: of numerous such process are results necessity. The out who of yet got them into of modes expression, such with iarity no had famil possibly, that people people: to this, prior ordinary even or students, other students, art fine artists, groups: graphic different everyday. aspect every in it growing is that claimed it be could perhaps and today on until lived lows, has and highs its with phenomenon,positive a was flow which, this Nevertheless, hour. exact of or an even day moments exact of an precise the ter to regis as go so far occasionally would historiography of this accuracy the and nation, the of history the in chapter from asignificant pages well! as [it mixed and was] crowded maybe yes, and reality—and life with ones into overfilled settings ing The fact of the matter is that in order aprogressive and in to teach that is matter of the fact The specific its and system education the that is matter of the fact The movement unplanned their with that, is matter of the fact The produced are by etc., of martyrs, pictures Posters, bulletins, the formed somehow also cities the in walls how is the that And 123

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