Let’s go back forty years…
From Tate Britain’s The 80s: Photographing Britain to Outlaws: Fashion Renegades of 80s London at Fashion and Textile Museum; the Disney adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s The Rivals to the camp styling of The Substance; and The Cure coming out with a new album to Rick Astley’s new biography – the 1980s is having a renaissance…
Discover the 1980s afresh with a decade-defining book, evocatively illustrated and expertly curated. The 1980s were a time of bold exploration, dazzling creativity, inspiring unity – and stark division.
Technology, media, gender roles, race, sexuality, geopolitics, climate and even our place in the universe – you name it – the decade saw almost all aspects of humanity challenged, upturned and reimagined. The 1980s: Image of a Decade tells this story in a wholly original and highly immersive way. By mixing and matching images of design, art, fashion, music, video games, sport, iconic photography, global events and technological innovations in playful and often unexpected ways, it uncovers a fascinating ecosystem of influence between high and low culture that has shaped the world today.
These juxtapositions act like a perfectly curated mixtape.
Skip forward from the bold and bizarro designs of the Memphis group to the backstreets of Madrid with its post-fascist counterculture movement La Movida Madrileña. Experience a new-look New York shaped by Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Madonna, and peek inside hedonistic London clubs frequented by gay icons like Boy George and Leigh Bowery.
See how emerging tech and media companies like Apple and MTV sparked creative innovation and cultural anxieties, while in Japan Nintendo ushered in a new era of gaming with a pixelated plumber named Super Mario. Travel to the edge of our solar system with the Voyager probes before crashing back down to Earth to face the realities of Apartheid, AIDS, a catastrophic famine in Africa and the constant threat of nuclear Armageddon.
From the global rise of hip hop and powerhouse women in arts and politics, to the collapse of the Berlin Wall and communism in Europe, The 1980s: Image of a Decade confronts humanity’s triumphs and tragedies to show how the clamour of cultural debate and existential fears can reach decibels that topple barriers and instigate meaningful change.
Henry Carroll is an author, editor and screenwriter with an MFA from the Royal College of Art, London. His bestselling ‘Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs’ series has sold over one million copies across 22 languages. He is also the author of Photographers on Photography. Originally from London, Henry now lives in Los Angeles.
The 1980s: Image of a Decade by Henry Carroll
Released November 7th with 215 illustrations, RRP £45
thamesandhudson.com
