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Reproduce & Revolt/Reproduce Y Rebélate

By Ari | May 17, 08 09:29 AM

Reproduce & Revolt/Reproduce Y Rebélate is a new book edited by Josh MacPhee & Favianna Rodriguez for Just Seeds Visual Resistance Artists Cooperative (published by Soft Skull Press), and is a must-have for any activist group who needs to give their posters and handbills more visual punch: $18, 196 pages, 100 artists, 25 countries, 500 public domain political graphics. It's bilingual (Español/English).

I'm not usually a fan of clip art, but I make a lot of posters for activist groups, and I really see the need for this collection. Grassroots groups are more likely to have to make posters in a pinch, very quickly, for events that are hard to find high-quality images for. Ever tried to throw together a quick broadsheet for a screening of an extremely indie feminist slideshow about imperialism in Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and The Philippines? Try finding photos for that online. (Seriously, if you search photo sites for Hawaii and women all you get is hula girls. It's depressing. And part of why we should be talking about imperialism in Hawaii.) Now what if you're not an designer, illustrator or otherwise capable of turning grainy JPEGs or phone camera snapshots into decent printable graphics? This book has the potential to make life a lot easier for groups with limited means.

My only critique is that the book apparently doesn't come with a CD. Which I guess is good because it means less waste. But it does mean a lot of people will likely take messy scans of very pretty graphics. Or maybe folks prefer photocopiers, though I think there's a lot of waste involved in cut-and-paste photocopier-aided layout. Perhaps a companion online download area would have worked well? Anyway, despite being anchored in the material world, this book is pretty awesome.

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