Socialist visual cultures went far beyond political iconography: beyond the hammer and sickle, red banners or stylized portraits of Lenin, they could create normality and have an integrative effect, create identity, but also be subversive. Images emotionally bound the population to the system. The anthology deals with various popular media from late socialism: picture postcards, packaging, shop window decorations and other everyday image forms. The contributions describe areas of tension between the political program of a unified socialist hemisphere and the visual breaks in cultural and social practice. A glossary explains key aesthetic concepts.