207 East 32nd Street

We just ran across this article from the New York Times Sunday real estate section about history of the building which houses our studio. Our windows are marked in picture below.

The building was originally built in 1901-1902 on the watch of the Tammany boss Richard Croker, to house the headquarters of the Tammany Central Association.

"Croker, who had become boss of Tammany Hall in 1886, for 16 years worked the job not as a public service, but as a money tree. Of the three dozen individual Tammany districts, Croker’s Tammany Central Association, the 20th, occupied an old house at 207 East 32nd Street. In July 1901, optimistic about the coming fall elections, the organization started work on a purpose-built clubhouse on the same site.

The architect, Robert T. Lyons, developed an exuberantly French facade of red brick and limestone, with a mansard roof; although showy for 32nd Street east of the Third Avenue El, it was worthy of any lot on Fifth Avenue. Lyons presumably gave it a few smoke-filled rooms, and it also had a top-floor gymnasium, card rooms and an assembly hall for political conventions."

Read the full article here.

Rock Against Racism

Browsing internet, I came across this Rock Against Racism button. Seeing this button flooded me with nostalgia and sadness. Nostalgia, because I remember when I was wearing that button in 1978/1979.
Sadness, because not much has changed about our relationship with racism. It seems like it is even getting worse.

"Rock Against Racism was a campaign set up in the United Kingdom in 1976 as a response to an increase in racial conflict and the growth of white nationalist groups such as the National Front. The campaign involved pop, rock, punk and reggae musicians staging concerts with an anti-racist theme, in order to discourage young people from embracing racism. The campaign was founded, in part, as a response to statements and activities by well-known rock musicians that were widely regarded as racist."

Photos of me by Milisav Vesovic.

"1941/42 Anti-Masonic Posters" Catalogue

This year I managed to complete my collection of 20 Anti-Masonic (Anti-Semitic) posters from 1941, originally produced for Anti-Masonic (Anti-Semitic) exhibition in Belgrade, Serbia. The exhibition "The Grand Exhibition of the Work of Masons, Jews and Communists" was organized by German "Propaganda Section South-East" department, with the material support from the German military authorities and quisling Serbian Government.

Because Zagreb Jewish Film Festival Association and I are using these posters for traveling shows,
I decided also to create an accompanying catalogue.

The amazing amount of research through many different archives, and writing for the catalogue,
was done by art historian Jelena Banjac. The 64-page bilingual (Serbian/English) catalogue was designed by Dejan Krsic, and published by Heartefact Fund, Serbia.

All this was made possible by generous financial donation of AIC Foundation Inc.

More about the traveling shows:
http://mirkoilic.blogspot.com/2013/10/antimasonic-poster-show-opening.html
http://mirkoilic.blogspot.com/2014/12/anti-masonic-poster-show-opening.html
http://mirkoilic.blogspot.com/2013/05/anti-masonic-poster-show-catalog.html

The pdf of the complete catalogue can be downloaded here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4NmV8-aIaGdbVA2bWJWanFCZE0/view?usp=sharing

11 Industries Logo

We designed the logo and identity for 11 Industries, "A lifestyle company that creates fashionable, high quality accessories & gifts for men". Below are some of their products using the logo.

For more photos click here.

Hot From the Press to the Bookshelf

The Croatian book publishing company Adamic just published the book "Igraonica za odrasle:
Polet 1976.-1990." (Playground for Grownups: Polet 1976.-1990.) for which I designed the cover.
It is a book by Zeljko Kruselj, about Polet, the most influential youth weekly newspaper in
ex-Yugoslavia. For a short period of time, I was the editor of comics and illustrations there. 

Hari Džekson in New York

I recently brought back from Serbia two black and white photographs of Hari Džekson (Harry Jackson), which he was displaying in the window of his photography studio.

Aljuš Musli (1944–1999), a young Muslim photographer from my hometown of Bijeljina
(population 10,000-15,000 at that time), who was a passionate Western films lover, so much that starting in the seventies he changed his name to Hari Džekson and devoted all the time and
money he had to shooting Western movies, with 8mm camera. He and his friends, fellow "actors" built sets of Western towns from scratch. Local peasants were supplying them with horses and
local Roms (Gypsies) acted as Indians. At that time he became a cult personality.
Unfortunately, by now he is mostly forgotten.

Soon I will be taking his photographs to the West of USA, he deserved to finally make that trip.

Unfortunately, all links and stories I have about Hari are in Bosnian language.
More about Hari Džekson here.
___

I par isjecaka iz clanka “Vecernjih novosti” (06.04.2010):
*
Sem Harija, Nastić, Muratović i Ristić se sećaju i drugara Ota i Žaka, koji su na snimanju
`popili mnogo batina`, jer se to radilo odistinski, nije se moglo odglumiti.
- Mašinovođu potplatimo sa litrom rakije i dve porcije ćevapa, da malo uspori voz, kako bismo snimili scenu pljačke voza. Nije nama ništa posebno trebalo. Kamenolom imaš u Teočaku, Drina ti je kao Rio Grande, u Jablanuši je ona livada bila jalova, ništa se na njoj nije sejalo, bila je bolja nego prava prerija. U mahali nađemo nekoliko Roma, samo im stavimo ratničke boje, pa kao pravi Indijanci.
I seljaci su bili dobri, davali nam svoju stoku kad god je trebalo da snimimo krdo goveda, milo im da se njihova goveda pojave u filmu - priča Juso Muratović, čiji je čitav život obeležen filmom.
*
HARI Džekson je u to vreme bio veoma popularan, pa su nas zvali da snimamo reklame. Vršačka pivara nam je 1987. ponudila da snimimo reklamu za sok. Bili su slogani `Hari Džekson pije sok, alkoholu kaže jok` i `Žedan sam ko pas, daj mi ananas`. Ja sam dobio honorar od 37.000 dinara.
Ali, sve je pojela inflacija, takvo je vreme bilo - kaže Đorđe Nastić.

WakEUp! Festival in Belgrade

I am leaving for Belgrade where I am going to open the festival WakEUp! with
Serbian playwright Biljana Srbljanovic. 

WakEUp! festival will be held December 7th–16th, with a goal to raise questions related to the refugees and their uncertain destinies, and at the same time it calls
the world to show solidarity and humanity.

I hope to see you there!

More about the festival here.

More in English.