Tagging Architecture in Eastern European Cold War Propaganda Postcards
Superimposing contemporary graffiti tags onto Soviet architecture postcards, Jones' photomontages invoke a perpetual form of resistance to government superstructures
Through a mashup of mid-century state-sanctioned brutalist architecture and contemporary undercover graffiti tags, artist photographer Gabriel Jones remixes Soviet postcards of the 20th century into photomontages with an updated message. Top-down meets grassroots and sublime and subliminal clash in these kitschy collages: sometimes cynical, sometimes cheeky, sometimes profound. Each structure gains a slogan such as "Honk if you don't exist"; "Make Orwell fiction again"; "Microsoft is a crazy thing to name your company"; and "Communist jokes are only funny if everyone gets them." Such decontextualization provides a humorous effect, but also brings a sort of recognizability to the new image on the postcard. This dynamic shows humanity's innate resilience to imposed superstructures—be it only in our minds or among our communities—which in turn lends itself to a mirror by which to view the superstructures imposed by contemporary politicians.
STATUS: Forthcoming | 3/10/2026
This title is not yet published in the U.S. To pre-order or receive notice when the book is available, please email orders @ artbook.com
FORMAT: Hbk, 7 x 5.25 in. / 140 pgs / 64 color. LIST PRICE: U.S. $29.95 LIST PRICE: CANADA $44.95 ISBN: 9789083579573 PUBLISHER: Set Margins’ publications AVAILABLE: 3/10/2026 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Forthcoming AVAILABILITY: Awaiting stock TERRITORY: NA LA ASIA AFR ME
Gabriel Jones: I’m Inside Tagging Architecture in Eastern European Cold War Propaganda Postcards
Published by Set Margins’ publications.
Superimposing contemporary graffiti tags onto Soviet architecture postcards, Jones' photomontages invoke a perpetual form of resistance to government superstructures
Through a mashup of mid-century state-sanctioned brutalist architecture and contemporary undercover graffiti tags, artist photographer Gabriel Jones remixes Soviet postcards of the 20th century into photomontages with an updated message. Top-down meets grassroots and sublime and subliminal clash in these kitschy collages: sometimes cynical, sometimes cheeky, sometimes profound. Each structure gains a slogan such as "Honk if you don't exist"; "Make Orwell fiction again"; "Microsoft is a crazy thing to name your company"; and "Communist jokes are only funny if everyone gets them." Such decontextualization provides a humorous effect, but also brings a sort of recognizability to the new image on the postcard. This dynamic shows humanity's innate resilience to imposed superstructures—be it only in our minds or among our communities—which in turn lends itself to a mirror by which to view the superstructures imposed by contemporary politicians.
