EXHIBITION
RUSS BESTLEY : Torn Edges
Punk in the Faraway Towns
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In celebration of the evolution of the graphic design techniques used to create record covers, fanzines, flyers and posters throughout the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, Bestley presents a collection of work that features techniques such as collage and cut & paste, the use of Letraset type and Xerox photocopying, methods that were embedded in the culture of the underground DIY movement at the time.
The exhibition features work that featured on the vinyl record sleeves of some renowned bands that seeded the genre of punk, such as the Sex Pistols, The Damned and Buzzcocks, through to local examples that manifested as the punk diaspora spread to the faraway towns and villages across the UK (and globally!) including, of course, one of Great Torrington's finest – Cult Maniax!
Russ Bestley is a Reader in Graphic Design & Subcultures at the London College of Communication, editor of the journal Punk & Post-Punk, series editor and art director for the Global Punk book series and a founder member of both the Punk Scholars Network (PSN) and Subcultures Interest Group (SIG). His most recent publication, Turning Revolt into Style: The Process and Practice of Punk Graphic Design (Manchester University Press 2025), charts the relationship between amateur cultural producers, design studios and printers during a period of significant technological change that impacted established labour relations across the design and print professions of the 1970s and early 1980s. His research archive can be accessed at www.hitsvilleuk.com.
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