Counterpressure
Underground press during the Second World War
Commissioned by the Antwerp Municipal Library and the Institute for Social History (Amsab) [2004]
Scenography and production of exhibition; direction and production of film ‘Witnesses’
The underground press – texts produced by the resistance against the Germans and their allies during the Second World War – reveals a dramatic time during which democracy and human rights experienced a profound crisis. The underground press offers a striking illustration of the power of words and nonviolent resistance.
The exhibition ‘Counterpressure’ begins by confronting the visitor with official documents controlled by the occupier: carefully designed propaganda like the official journal Signaal, posters, and a jubilant film report on the 100,000th Belgian laborer to leave for Germany.
Exhibition
The publications of the underground press are hidden in drawers and behind shutters, are only available ‘under the table’ – just as they were during the Second World War. In the silence of the small niches off the main aisle, striking citations from these clandestine documents are projected using slides. The themes handled in the citations – collaboration, food rationing, work opportunities, humor – are introduced by a photo and text outside the niche.
The exhibition forces the viewer to take a critical look at the media and the facts during times of war and occupation.
Film
A film eye-witness accounts by several former members of the resistance shows how men and women defended the freedom of the press in practice at the risk of their own lives, and how they made choices – often without knowing the actual consequences.
At the right, a film clip featuring Jeanne Brabants and Staf Vivys.
Colofon
Een initiatief van:
Stadsbibliotheek Antwerpen
An Renard
Amsab
Instituut voor Sociale Geschiedenis
Martine Vermandere
De tentoonstelling vertrekt vanuit de collecties ’geheime pers’ of ‘sluikpers’ in de Stadsbibliotheek Antwerpen en van Amsab-Instituut voor Sociale Geschiedenis.
ConceptInhoud:Bruno De Wever Scenografie:Terenja van Dijk VormgevingTerenja van Dijk i.s.m. Randoald Sabbe Audiovisuele productiesRegie en productieTerenja van Dijk Camera en geluidJess De Gruyter MontageJess De Gruyter en Terenja van Dijk InterviewsGert De Prins Techniek diapresentatieLudo Engels (LEAV) Techniek audiovisuele presentatiePatrick Hermans (Sony) | TekstenBruno De Wever GetuigenJeanne Brabants PublicatieTegendruk Met wetenschappelijke ondersteuning vanSOMA Studie en Documentatiecentrum Oorlog en Hedendaagse Maatschappij: Jan laplasse PartnersArchief –en documentatiecentrum van de verzetsorganisatie Witte Brigade - Fidelo |