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Exhibition theme: The Transformation of the GDR: Discarded household effects at the roadside [18/39]

OBJECT INFORMATION

Info

July 1990
Berlin-Pankow
Created By: Christer Markgraf

License: Creative Commons License

From the Set

Garbage dumps shortly after the fall of the Wall, July 1990

From the Set

Close-ups
Economic Change

Depicts

dustbin, litter, stencil, traffic sign

Context

consumption, litter, monetary union

People/Organizations

Busch-Petersen, Nils

Places

Other places (Berlin)

Other items in this set

Shortly after the border was opened, changes were pushed through in the GDR. The most conspicuous came about during the campaign for the Volkskammer election in March 1990, when countless election posters, often with commentaries, became a popular motif for photographers. Important, too, was the presence of leading West German politicians at election meetings in all of the larger towns in East Germany – not to mention the elections themselves. The currency union, which came about on 1 July 1990, put Western goods in shops at standard prices. This was a first step in bringing the East closer to the West.

Original Caption

"Following the monetary union, discarded household effects were often seen at the side of the road in the GDR."