The Year 1974

TIME TRAVELLING WITH SISTERMAG

The year 1974

The year Abel Martín created »sans titre«

Text & Research: Elisabeth Stursberg

History & Politics

(International)

Politically, the year 1974 was shaped by big changes: US President Richard Nixon stepped down after the Watergate scandal broke loose, while many states both in South America and Europe were ruled by violent dictators. After Portugal managed to break free from the shackles of its oppressive system, neighbouring country Spain was put on the spot. Spanish dictator Franco died the following year – but it would take another 12 years for Spain to join what we today call the European Union.

History & Politics

(national)

In spring, Germany was riveted by busted DDR-spy Günther Guillaume. Federal chancellor Willy Brandt took the consequences and stepped down, to great national and international dismay. Many hoped that his successor Helmut Schmidt might have shared his relaxed and careful style of governing. In all this hustle, Germany celebrated its 25th birthday on May 23rd. The DDR gained international approval and eliminated the word »Wiedervereinigung« (reunification) from official parlance and changed license plates from »D« to »DDR« on January 1st.

Economics

The ramifications of the oil crisis a year earlier still ruled most of the economic developments in 1974. Internationally, willingness to participate in consumption decreased drastically. In Germany, the first VW-Golf was sold – a model that captured the frugal Zeitgeist just like the VW-Käfer. And more news for car-lovers: the speed limit introduced with the oil crisis on 1973 was lifted on March 15th.

Contemporary Art

Op-Art was slowly establishing itself as an independent form of art after Time Magazine coined the term in 1964 and gained more admirers. Rooted in Neo-Impressionism, Dada and Bauhaus, old motifs were re-imagined with new technology and newly interpreted, considering physical phenomena. The focus was solely on the objective interaction between work and viewer while asking how optical perception and consciousness work. It blurred the lines between art and science.

Science & Research I

Along with Op-Art, the years before 1974 had been devoted to connecting the human brain to computers: a deep and re-occurring desire that was not only the subject of science fiction movies like Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) but also successful experiments were conducted at universities like Stanford Research Institute. The possibility to display brain waves in so-called Electroencephalographs was a significant step. Today, this method is used for sleep research and to treat epilepsy. These developments were also linked to artists like Abel Martin who experimented with computersupported techniques.

Science & Research II

American psychologist Stanley Milgram published a longer explanation to his 1961 study that he had first presented in 1963. The new title: »Obedience to Authority. An Experimental View«. The seminal study about behavioural psychology had been subject to some controversy and was relevant to understanding the violent actions of authoritarian regimes. The experiment tested to which level people were comfortable with causing others pain (via electric shocks) when asked to do so. The background of the study dealt with authority, guilt and individual responsibility in a bigger system.

Sports

Looking at sports, Germany was almost in a dream-like state as the West-German national team won the World Cup for the second time – and on home turf. The final game between West-Germany and the Netherlands was the conclusion of the first World Cup that could be watched live and in colour on international television.

History & Archaeology

The discovery of the Terracotta Army in March in Shaanxi, China gained great international attention. The huge significance of this find was clear long before UNESCO declared the Army to be a World Heritage Site in 1987.

Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-N0702-0037 / Mittelstädt, Rainer / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Nature

The whole year was cool and lacking sun in the northern hemisphere. Many European holiday plans were cancelled due to huge amounts of rain. After three full July days of rain in Hamburg, German newspaper DER SPIEGEL even speculated about a new Ice Age on August 12th. The WELT snappily commented that »summer was a Monday this year«. One consequence of the wet weather: the wine crop was abysmal and wines from 1974 (except those from California) should be avoided at all costs.

People

On January 16th, Kate Moss was born in Croydon, London. A couple of months later, on April 28th, a daughter was born to a car mechanic and a hairdresser about 1,300 kilometres south of London: Penélope Cruz. Back then, nobody knew that the girl would become a highly successful actress at a young age – and the first Spanish actress to receive an Academy Award in 2009 for her portrayal of Maria Elena in Woody Allen’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008).