Angela Davis, the Stasi, and subversive art 

The exhibition | Episode 1

A remarkable propaganda effort was launched and carried out in the GDR between 1970 and 1972 with a postcard campaign. The aim was the release of Black Power activist Angela Davis, who had been imprisoned in the United States in 1970 on charges of terrorism.

But why did Erich Honecker and the SED leadership stand up for the civil rights activist? And how did the activist Davis herself feel about the instrumentalisation of her person by the communist regime?

These questions, among others, are the focus of Dr. Kata Krasznahorkai’s research project, which is funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation. They also played a role in the conception of an exhibition on Angela Davis in the Kunsthalle im Lipsiusbau of the Dresden State Art Collection, which the researcher is visiting as part of her research.

Here is the link to the Episodes!