¡Guerra a muerte!

ca. 1935. Very Good. Printed bill, 35 x 50 cm. Blue ink on paper. Restored and laid down.

The propaganda war against Franco’s forces in Spain was fought largely with posters. These were pasted up on walls in the night at great risk not only to those putting them up, but to the printers, artists, and organizers, too. The Socorro Rojo Internacional (S.R.I.), a creation of the Communist International Congress of 1922, was intended to function as a support and aid organization (providing soup kitchens, medical care, etc.) but also propagandized energetically. This poster declares “War unto Death! To the provocateur, the spy, to anyone who sows discontent and fear. Let’s end the Fifth Column.” The little figure is composed of multiple eyes and antennae, keeping watch and listening. Such posters were willfully destroyed, and surviving examples are rare.