yr12_scw_Posters

This poster was issued by //Socorro Rojo Internacional//. Created in 1934, SRI was just one of many of the organizations that were there to provide vital services and supplies to war stricken countries. This poster was designed as a condemnation of the fascists in Spain, the poster depicts the agenda of the communist (predominantly Russians) who wished to support Spanish Loyalists though not appear revolutionary. Fearing the increasing threat of Germany under Hitler, Stalin didn’t want to offend democratic courtiers like England, France and the United States by antagonizing a revolution in Spain. Rather, Stalin wanted to use the Spanish Civil War to demonstrate to these nations exactly what fascism meant. By incorporating actual photographs from the war, Antonio López Padial, the artist who designed this poster, created a powerful anti-Fascist image. The main elements of fascism are simplified to a very simple yet brutal level. There are various images organized around an imposing swastika. In the top left there is a mother trying to calm her children, who are crying, the heading reads “misery”. The section in the right depicts some statues that have been reduced to ruble, the heading is “destruction”. The last of the two windows are making reference to the massive injury and loss of life during the war. One window is labeled “Persecution” showing prisoners walking down a street with arms raised. The other window is labeled “death and shows blood flowing out over the street. This is to show the intense physical suffering. The message at the top simply states “This is Fascism!”

Throughout the duration of the Spanish civil war, both of the sides repeatedly accused each other of being dependant on the support of foreign countries. In this instance the poster contrasts the term “Los Nacionales” (used by the rebellious faction during the war, with several different characters that represent the foreign countries from where support was drawn.  In the centre of this picture we can see a bishop there to represent the catholic church, who mostly supported the military rebellion. On the left there is a military figure who wears a fasces, fascist emblem, on a blue sash, there for he is there to represent Mussolini’s Fascist Italy. To the right of him are two north African moors, there are also three more north Africans peering out of the portholes in the hull of the ship, they represent the Moroccan troops that fought in the war. They were the only organized force used by the enemy during the first few months of the war. The artist is making appeal to a traditional view of moors held by the Spanish people, and were widely feared for their brutality.