I Object! Dissent at The British Museum

Cats on the internet, when it was made of papyrus. A parody of Egyptian funerary rites, 1307-1070 BC

I recently had a day in London wandering around the Royal Academy and the British Museum. A great way to spend a day!

Last time I visited the British Museum was for Halloween. This visit followed my morning at the Royal Academy and a long relaxing lunch with a couple of ex-colleagues.

I Object! is curated by Ian Hislop, who UK readers will know from the TV panel game Have I Got News For You and his editorship of the anti-establishment magazine that's part of the establishment: Private Eye. This is a man who knows his stuff when it comes to dissent.

The exhibition mentions ancient Greek and Egyptian acts of satire, but let's start with dissent through knitting...

Pussyhat, 2017
Janet knitted a pussyhat, as did many of her friends, and for some it was their first attempt at knitting, it being something of a vanishing craft in the UK. This isn't hers, it's one donated after the 2017 demonstrations against a certain US politician's description of grabbing women.

Hong Kong Yellow Umbrella, 2014
Protesters used umbrellas to shield themselves from tear-gas during anti-government protests in 2014. It became known as the Umbrella Movement.

Moving indoors to the kitchen...

Phantom Landscape III by Yang Yongliang, 2007
There's a series of these and I think they're beautiful. I'm a big fan of the classic Chinese landscape art this invokes. The works were executed on a computer and I've seen them printed onto plates.

'Say Yes to Vodka! Papa Mikhail says No to Vodka!' circa 1991
Lots to see here. In the 90's Mikhail Gorbachev, world-renowned alcoholic lanched a temperance campaign. The 'HET!' character was part of a temperance poster from the '50s. The other image is the underside of the plate - imagine creating something like this before the Berlin Wall came down.

Dissent in your pocket...

Zippo lighter from the Vietnam war, 1970-71
That's some pretty dark humour there, but they were dark times.

Two penny piece, early 20th century
Back in the days before biros, it was easy to get hold of letter-punches. I remember using them at school, but being far worse at getting the letters aligned.

Spot the rude word in each note. Seychelles banknotes from 1968
You would expect that bank notes would have been examined closely before being printed, but entered circulation before anyone saw the messages.

One penny piece, 1967
I'm not sure what monopoly the artist is complaining about as ITV had launched in 1955. Just shows that complaining about the BBC is nothing new. It's what government broadcasters are there for.

Defacing British legal tender is an offence, but not in America. Got a grievance and a biro?

Defaced American currency
1 - THE CIA MURDERED KENNEDY
In DOG-MAS we trust
????
2 - OBAMA WON - AMERCA LOST
IMPEACH THE TYRANT
OBAMACARE - THIS LIE CAN'T FLY!
I like the penmanship in the lower note - was the person trying to imitate Ralph Steadman? We saw a lot of notes like these when living in New York. There's a masters degree for someone in a proper study of defaced currency. I like to imagine it's just one very angry person in Wisconsin who scribbles on every note that passes through their hands.

This exhibition is on until January 20th and worth a visit if you can. The web site has lots more - including that staple of British humour - a fart joke!