@article{article_1668729, title={Leniniana and Yugonostalgia: A Visual Study on Post-Socialist Identity and Cultural Memory}, journal={Current Perspectives in Social Sciences}, volume={29}, pages={430–451}, year={2025}, DOI={10.53487/atasobed.1668729}, author={Yerköy, Samet}, keywords={Leniniana, Yugonostalji, kültürel bellek, görsel analiz, kolektif bellek}, abstract={This study aims to examine the relationship between post-socialist identity construction and cultural memory through Leniniana and Yugonostalgia, based on an interdisciplinary visual analysis method. In the post-Soviet and post-Yugoslav periods, the figures of Lenin and Tito were reshaped through visual representations and gained different meanings in collective memory. The study rests on a theoretical framework grounded in collective memory and lieux de mémoire concepts. Leniniana, as one of the most important visual traditions of Soviet ideology, has secured a lasting place in the cultural memory of the Soviet people. However, with the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Lenin’s public representation changed and acquired new meanings. Similarly, Yugonostalgia represents the nostalgic reshaping of the collective memory constructed under Tito’s leadership after the collapse of Yugoslavia. The study is based on a qualitative case analysis of various visual materials, including propaganda posters, murals, contemporary artworks, and digital images. The selected images are evaluated in terms of their representation of post-socialist nostalgia, symbolic compensation for ideological voids, and the cultural traces of social identity quests. The interaction between visual images, nostalgia, ideology, and cultural memory is explored, focusing on how these figures have been integrated into new narratives in the post-socialist era. Particular attention is given to how these images have transformed through propaganda and popular culture. The main findings indicate that the images of Lenin and Tito demonstrate that the ideological legacy of past regimes has not been entirely erased from collective memory but rather reproduced in contemporary identity negotiations. In conclusion, the visuals of Leniniana and Yugonostalgia play a critical role in representing post-socialist identities and understanding the evolution of cultural memory, offering significant insights into how post-socialist societies relate to their past.}, number={3}, publisher={Atatürk Üniversitesi}