PERSPECTIVES: Alec Dunn on LIBERATION Magazine

PERSPECTIVES: Alec Dunn on LIBERATION Magazine
Wednesday, May 8th, 2024
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Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center presents a conversation with Alec Dunn about LIBERATION Magazine and Vera B. Williams.

LIBERATION (1956 – 1977) was a radical leftist publication established by a group of civil rights organizers and pacifist conscientious objectors to WWII, who came together in the mid-1950s to found a unique magazine blending art, commentary, and political thought. Two major players in the magazine’s history include Bayard Rustin, who had visited Black Mountain College during the 1947 Journey of Reconciliation, and Paul Goodman, who had lectured at BMC.

BMC alumna Vera B. Williams became involved with LIBERATION while living at the Gate Hill Co-op in Rockland County, NY. She went on to be the magazine’s principal cover artist, illustrating 76 covers over the course of its publication. Alec Dunn’s research tells the story of Williams’ path to LIBERATION through BMC and the many graphic styles she explored through her work on the magazine.

Alec Dunn is a writer, artist, and printer based in Portland, OR.  He has designed book and record covers, political graphics, punk fliers and is a member of the Justseeds Artists Cooperative. Since 2010, he has been co-editor of Signal: A Journal of International Political Graphics & Culture. His writing, as well as a selection of Vera Williams’ LIBERATION covers, appear in the exhibition Vera B. Williams / STORIES, currently on view at BMCM+AC.