1989. The End of the System
An exhibition about the end of communism and the beginning of democracy
in Central and Eastern Europe
CMC Athenaeum, beginning Wednesday, September 17th
This extraordinary exhibition presents the “relay race” from communism to democracy which began in 1989 in Central and Eastern Europe. It focuses on the Polish road to freedom and how it inspired liberation movements through the entire region. The topic of the exhibition is showcased in 25 informational boards filled with text (comprising of pieces of memoirs, documents, articles from the official and non-official press) as well as iconography (i.e. photographs, graphics and posters). The subsequent pieces of the exhibition present the beginnings of Solidarno?? (Solidarity), the Polish turning point of 1989, political changes taking place in other countries of the Eastern Bloc, the fall of the iron curtain, as well as the implication of these changes leading finally to the accession to NATO and the EU. The motto of the entire display is the famous quote by T.G. Asha regarding the length of time it took to bring changes to specific countries of the region: “In Poland it took ten years, in Hungary ten months, in East Germany ten weeks: perhaps in Czechoslovakia it will take ten days…”