Against Apartheid 1983

Created in 1983 by the British artist Joe Tilson, this original poster formed part of the international Artists of the World Against Apartheid campaign. The project was organized in cooperation with the United Nations Special Committee against Apartheid, using contemporary art to condemn South Africa’s institutionalized system of racial segregation. The poster edition was printed in France by Lebois-Offset.

Tilson organizes the composition as a grid of twelve loosely drawn compartments. A profile marked with a net-like pattern, an emphatic red cross, vegetation, a crouching human figure and the black silhouette of the African continent appear alongside brightly coloured geometric forms. The handwritten words “…against Apartheid” complete the message in the lower-right corner.

The design combines the visual language of political protest with Tilson’s distinctive use of signs, stencils and symbolic shapes. Several forms resemble labels, plaques or identification tags, suggesting systems of classification and control. Black, green, yellow and red create a powerful rhythm across the white background, while the intentionally rough brushwork gives the poster an urgent, handmade quality.

Joe Tilson was an important figure in postwar British art and one of the leading artists associated with British Pop Art during the 1960s. Working across painting, printmaking, sculpture and wooden constructions, he frequently combined simple geometric structures with words, cultural references and symbolic imagery. During the 1970s, his work moved away from commercial Pop imagery toward history, mythology, nature and political engagement.

Tilson was one of fifteen internationally recognized artists invited to participate in the campaign, alongside Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Rauschenberg, Wifredo Lam, Antoni Tàpies and Ernest Pignon-Ernest. With its important United Nations connection, powerful political message and unmistakable Pop-influenced imagery, this original 1983 poster is particularly desirable for collectors of protest art, British Pop Art and international anti-apartheid history.

Original Poster

Humanitarian - Political - South Africa

In cooperation with the Special Committee of the United Nations

Of the Indre

Good condition, one stain