Cover of Volume 2: Connections, 1967

Connections was an underground magazine that ran from 1967-69 which covered politics, protests another various campus confrontations in UW- Madison.  Their primary features surrounded the Vietnam War Protests and they prided themselves on being underground, ‘dedicated to remaining underground, rather than being buried above ground.’

The cover itself is a black and white newsprint in heavy contrast, giving it a gritty underground feel. The text is bold and confrontational however the reflected text under adds a sense of playfulness. The subject is a nude woman sitting down, her face turned away from the viewer. It's very shadowy and silhouetted, almost abstract. I don't think the nudity is representing sexuality but rather freedom and nonconformity. To me the figure emphasis anonymity rather than personal connection yet there there is still a sense of vulnerability and quiet resistance which resonates with the content in the magazine and also the general aesthetic of the underground press at the time.

I believe this image belongs in the archive because the underground print movement reshaped how design, art and politics is presented, especially in tandem with each other. It emphasises self publishing, reaching student and activist communities outside of mainstream print. It shows how design fuelled protest movements and made a different during a period of upheaval. The experimental typography and symbolism I think are interesting uses of graphic design and emphasises the ‘people’s medium.'  It shows design for the sake of mobilising communities and is a time capsule of cultural expression.