George Hajian

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George Hajian AUT

1972: A year in focus

This limited-edition publication designed by George Hajian marks the 50th anniversary of the Gay Liberation Movement in New Zealand.

The year 1972 was a turning point in the advancement of Civil Rights for LGBTQ+ people in Aotearoa, with 2022 marking the 50th anniversary of the Gay Liberation Movement in New Zealand. To mark this, Brent Coutts and George Hajian collaborated with photographers John Miller and Max Oettli to produce a publication celebrating this significant historical event.

Designed and hand-bound by George Hajian in a multi-section format, the publication reflects the collective effort of the Gay Liberation Movement 50 years ago. The sections feature a foreword and a writing by Brent Coutts focusing on the year 1972 as a turning point in the advancement of civil rights for LGBTQ+; a photographic section including images from the consciousness-raising ‘Gay Day Happening’ by John Miller, and a photographic documentary by Max Oettli of the ‘zap’ (a form of unannounced direct-action activism) at the Registry of Births, Deaths, and Marriages in Auckland in 1972. These are followed by a primary documents section and a timeline of events.

The limited-edition publication (ed.100) looks back on and celebrates the efforts of a small group of gay liberation activists 50 years ago.

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George Hajian AUT

Centre for Design Research
Te Kura Toi a Hoahoa
School of Art and Design

Te Wānanga Aronui o Tāmaki Makau Rau,
Auckland University of Technology

Contact:

Susan Hedges susan.hedges@aut.ac.nz
Mandy Smith mandy.smith@aut.ac.nz

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to publish images or illustrations with their papers in CDR; neither editors nor publishers of CDR accept responsibility for any author’s/authors’ failure to do so.

© Centre for Design Research, AUT University 2021