• Listen to this segment

GUEST: Favianna Rodriguez, artist, a founding member of the EastSide Arts Alliance and co-editor of Reproduce and Revolt

Political activism can be easy. If you don’t believe it, just take a look at the newly released book Reproduce and Revolt. A collection of over 500 political graphics from around the world, Reproduce and Revolt is a “gift,” so to say, from talented political artists to the activist community. Hoping to encourage people to simply reproduce the graphics and use them to create political posters, all of the graphics in the book are copyright-free. Featured on the first few pages of the book are many versions of the ubiquitous revolutionary fist. Further on, Reproduce and Revolt features such artwork as Art Hazelwood’s poster of immigrants with the inscribed message “Immigrant rights, no borders,” as well as Nicolas Ganz’s spray painted graphic of a man behind bars, over the statement “Prisons will not prevent the reason for crime.” It’s arguable whether political artwork plays as large a role today as it did in the 60s and 70s. Still, powerful images can have a strong impact and can even influence the way we see the world. Artists Favianna Rodriguez and Josh MacPhee, have edited Reproduce and Revolt, in the spirit of using art in political activism. They describe the book as an “attempt to bring [political graphics] to the people that need them most, activists and organizers who are struggling to make change, day-by-day, step-by-step.”

For more information, visit www.favianna.com.

Favianna Rodriguez will be speaking about Reproduce and Revolt on:

Thursday July 10th, and Saturday July 12th, at 6 pm at Crewest: 110 Winston St. Los Angeles, CA 90013, tel (213) 627-8272. For more information, visit www.crewest.com.