Collection: Counterculture

Around the world democracy, especially liberal democracy, is under threat. Without expressing a particular view it is important to remember the diversity of thought that has been permissible, to a greater or lesser extent, over the last sixty years. 

From the first ever international writers' protest to the infamous gospel of the hippie movement, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, here we find the written exploits of some of modern culture's most notorious rebels. J.G. Ballard scrutinises the rise of media politician Ronald Reagan while Richard Neville's Play Book operates as a manual for the revolutionary 'Global Youthquake'. The Beat writers seek truth outside the American mainstream while the acid heads find nirvana beyond human consciousness. The KLF are burning their possessions and COUM Transmissions are being vilified as "wreckers of civilization" by politicians. What particular form of revolution attracts you most and just what would you view as their modern equivalents?

Before you click the link, please beware - these printed insurrections are not for the faint of heart  The revolution may not have been televised, but it was certainly very graphic.