Consumer Culture in the East February 1, 2012. The communist penchant for heavy industry (here: Klement Gottwald and the building of socialism in Czechoslovakia)

Consumer Culture in the EastFebruary 1, 2012

The communist penchant for heavy industry(here: Klement Gottwald and the building of socialism in

Czechoslovakia)

Competition for “socialist

achievement” on the factory floor

The old town – and industry – in Ostrava, Czechoslovakia

“Nowa Huta” outside Cracow, Poland(and the Lenin Steel Works)

The “Stalin Avenue” in East Berlin

Shoppers along the Stalinallee

Stores along the Stalinallee, 1954:

Furniture, groceries, household goods

Inside the stores: the GDR claimed to have all these goods available…

… but often people had to wait in line for

groceries, shoes, and

other necessities

Buying fabric in the East German“Trade Organization” shop, 1963

Movie theatersin the Soviet bloc:

“International” (Berlin), “Kosmos” (Berlin),

“Kosmos” (Katowice)

The World Clock on the

Alexanderplatz

Kitchen and living room of an

East German apartment, ca. 1963

Socialist modern: the “tin can” building in Leipzig(building from 1908; façade renovated 1966-68)

The TV Tower in East Berlin

(built 1965-69)

Close-up of the TV tower