Exhibition: Graphic artist Paul Peter Piech at People’s History Museum

People’s History Museum is celebrating an under-appreciated artist and campaigner in its latest exhibition. Dedicated to all Defenders of Human Freedoms is a career retrospective of Paul Peter Piech, who produced graphic prints promoting peace and racial harmony. Born in America in 1920, Piech worked in advertising, both in the US and later in the UK. After presumably having some Don Draper-style existential crisis, he changed direction in life. In 1959, he set up his own independent publishing company, Taurus Press, with little more than an outdated letterpress machine to his name. Using linocut images and metal type, Piech created powerful political works that still resonate today. It wasn’t all about social change; his more lyrical works display his love of jazz and the poet Walt Whitman. The exhibition includes a large collection of Piech’s posters, artist’s books, and even his works from his days in advertising.

Fri 6 Jan – Sun 12 Feb, The People’s History Museum, Left Bank, Spinningfields, Manchester, M3 3ER, Tel: 0161 838 9190, 10am – 5pm, FREE, www.phm.org.uk