Publications and Research
Document Type
Book Chapter or Section
Publication Date
1-2025
Abstract
This book reflects on the intersection of graphic design and political solidarity work of OSPAAAL, the Organization of Solidarity of the Peoples of Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Based in Havana, Cuba, OSPAAAL produced nearly 500 posters, magazines, and books beginning in the late sixties. Their output provides one of the most robust examples of political design ever seen; it offers a wealth of opportunities for thinking about how design is—and could be—deployed today in the search for more egalitarian social transformation.
Armed By Design brings together artists and thinkers from around the world whose work has been impacted by the legacy of OSPAAAL. These contributions reflect on impacts of OSPAAAL’s work on regional movements, including in the Arab world and Korea, design iconography, the evolution of tricontinentalism, our present-day relationship to OSPAAAL posters as a commodity, and authorship and reproduction.
Comments
This chapter was originally published in Armed by Design: Posters and Publications of Cuba's Organization of Solidarity of the Peoples of Asia, Africa, and Latin America (OSPAAAL), edited by Lani Hanna, Jen Hoyer, Josh MacPhee, Vero Ordaz, and Sarah Seidman.
Armed By Design is a four-language book; all chapters are translated into English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. This excerpt includes the table of contents and introduction in all four languages.