This is my nail project I was telling you guys about yesterday! I made this for a history project. We read a book (Life in the Third Reich) and had to do a project/paper on at least 2 chapters. I made them on stiletto nails mostly just because, even though I would never wear them, I've always had this secret desire to paint some of them. But also because it alludes to the violent nature of the Nazi Party. Sort of. Here are some pictures (and descriptions)!
The nail on the far left is from a chapter that talked about how kids were in the Hitler Youth programs, so I looked online and found some posters for those groups. The can and flowers are from a poster for the Jugendherbergen (a group for younger girls). The braid is representative of new opportunities for girls, and the bugle is from a poster about the Hitler Youth.
The middle nail is from a chapter about life in general in the Third Reich. I researched a bunch of propaganda posters that Hitler distributed. The snake was part of an anti-Jewish poster (a Nazi sword was stabbing a snake with the Jewish star on its head). Another poster I found was describing Hitler as the sower of peace, so that's what the wheat represents. The train is there because in the early years (1930s) there were a lot of posters encouraging tourism, especially by train.
The nail on the far right represents various forms of resistance the people implemented during the Nazi reign. The bike is from this instance where a guy in charge of the communist cycling club refused to give up his bikes to the Nazi storm troopers by claiming part ownership. After the war, he gave all the bikes back to the original owners. The flag is the Wiemar Republic's flag, which a woman hoisted during the Nazi's first May Day parade.
The nail on the left in this picture represents the swing groups that the 'rebellious youth' were a part of. Swing music and dancing was outlawed by Hitler because, well, he didn't like it! And it was American (hence the American flag). The swing youth, as they were called, could only get the music through records, since swing music wasn't played on the radio, so that's why there is a record player.
The nail on the right is supposed to be showing the friction between schools and homes in the early years (1930s). The schools were teaching Nazi everything and trying to take over the role of parent, which caused major problems at home, and not just because of the Nazi teachings. It kind of ruptured their entire society in rural areas. I did some research on 30s homes and schools, so the pictures on the nails are based of actual buildings from the period.
The nail on the left in this picture represents how in the early years (1920-30s, again), many families were moving into the cities to make a living. They couldn't live off just agriculture anymore, so they would send a family member or two to the city, hoping that they could get a decent job to help out.
The nail on the right represents the gangs. There were two major gangs in Nazi Germany - the White Rose and the Edelweiss Pirates. After doing some more research, I painted their symbols on the nail to represent them (a white rose for the White Rose, and an edelweiss flower for the Edelweiss Pirates). To try and control these groups, the SA would generally beat them or something, but sometimes they were hanged, which is the reason for the noose that's running down the middle of the nail.
It was a kind of depressing book, but very interesting at the same time! It gives a good insight as to how the average German lived in Nazi Germany, which is something we rarely (if ever) hear about.
As for book project news, it's finished!!!!! It looks really cool (I think so, anyway)! I haven't taken any pictures of it yet though, so I probably won't have them up until tomorrow. Maybe tonight. Maybe.... I can't wait to show you guys!!
