Between the Avent-Garde and the Everyday

The wave of anti-authoritarian political activity associated with the term “1968” can by no means be confined under the rubric of “protest,” understood narrowly in terms of street marches and other reactions to state initiatives. Indeed, the actions generated in response to “1968” frequently involved attempts of elaborate resistance within the realm of culture generally, and in the arts in particular. This blurring of the boundary between art and politics was a characteristic development of the political activism of the post-war period. This volume brings together a group of essays concerned with the multifaceted link between culture and politics, highlighting lesser-known case studies and opening new perspectives on the development of antiauthoritarian politics in Europe from the 1950s to the fall of Communism and beyond.

“The book engages important and intriguing questions about culture and politics and makes a contribution to contemporary history. The essays fit together well, with a nice trajectory that includes a chronological element. The topics engaged are generally “fresh” and new, but I was also impressed by the rich historiography...” · Jonathan Petropoulos, Claremont McKenna College

“This volume presents many new insights into a subject that has not yet been analysed systematically enough. It therefore represents an important contribution to the history of subcultures and will no doubt have a considerable influence on the scholarly debate on this topic.” · Detlef Siegfried, University of Copenhagen

Timothy Brown is Associate Professor of History at Northeastern University. He is the author of Weimar Radicals: Nazis and Communists between Authenticity and Performance (Berghahn, 2009). He is currently writing a monograph entitled 1968: West Germany in the World (forthcoming, Cambridge).

Lorena Anton is Junior Assistant Professor in Ethnology at University of Bucharest, Romania. Her recent publications and current research interests focus on the history and memory of communism in Europe, the anthropology of reproductive health and contemporary developments in European anthropological sciences.