At the age of 16, Wolf Biermann left the town where he grew up, Hamburg in West Germany, and emigrated to East Germany, where he first lived in a boarding school. He hoped to live out the ideals transmitted by his mother, an active member of the Communist Party. He would quickly come into conflict with the authorities — and remained disobedient. "I always went a little too far," he says.

East German dissidents could expect work bans, and they were spied upon and arrested. The chemist Robert Havemann (pictured in his East Berlin apartment in 1972 with Wolf Biermann, right) was one of the leaders of the protest movement. The Stasi, East Germany's secret police, monitored everything he did, and discussions took on conspiratorial tones. Biermann had a son with his daughter, Sibylle.

The suppression of East German dissidents worsened in the mid-70s. More and more artists applied to travel abroad, but their applications were usually rejected. The Stasi arrested singers Christian Kunert (left), Gerulf Pannach (second from left) and author Jürgen Fuchs (right). In August 1977, Biermann's friends were released from prison and deported to West Germany.

In the sold-out Sporthalle in Cologne, Wolf Biermann gave a concert on November 13, 1976, the first one in West Germany since 1965. The East German government had forbidden his performances years ago, blacklisting him for criticizing the "system ruled by political bureaucrats." Fans acclaimed him in Cologne.

East German authorities stripped Biermann of his citizenship in November 1976, sending him into exile in West Germany. His friend, author Günter Wallraff, first hosted him in his apartment in Cologne, where he had to start anew. Instead of being constantly followed by Stasi spies, Biermann was trailed by reporters from the German tabloid "Bild." It was a difficult period for him.

East German actors, such as Armin Mueller-Stahl (pictured) and Manfred Krug, who were until then well positioned in East Germany, signed a petition to the authorities in November 1976: "We are protesting against the expatriation of Wolfgang Biermann and plead for this decision to be reconsidered." Honecker retaliated by banning these artists from performing and working. They left for West Germany.

Friends, acquaintances, authors, journalists, artists and other colleagues: Everyone who had been in contact with Biermann was monitored by the Stasi. The artist Gabriele Stötzer (second from left in this Stasi photo) was imprisoned for a year for "defamation of the state," as she had collected the signatures against the expatriation of Wolf Biermann.

In West Germany, Biermann remained a politically active and outspoken artist. In 1983, he protested against the deportation of an opponent of the Turkish regime with Green Party politicians Petra Kelly (behind the police officer) and Lukas Beckmann (center). The police was called to clear the protest and Biermann was arrested.

Eva-Maria Hagen (second from left) was one the most popular actresses of East Germany. After she met and became a couple with the political songwriter in 1965, her career ended abruptly, as she was monitored by the Stasi and banned from performing. In 1977, she decided to flee and followed her partner to West Germany, along with her daughter Nina Hagen (right). This family photo is from 1988.

Biermann didn't mention his Jewish roots very often at the beginning. His father, a Jewish and Communist shipwright, was murdered at the concentration camp in Auschwitz. Biermann would let this painful experience resonate only through his music. He became good friends with the Jewish theater director George Tabori. They are shown here on Tabori's 90th birthday in 2004 at the Berliner Ensemble.

He said he found it somewhat strange, but the former East German dissident was still visibly touched when he was declared an honorary citizen of the reunited city of Berlin in 2007. Next to him on the picture is the city's then-Mayor Klaus Wowereit. In 2008, Biermann was also awarded an honorary doctorate degree from the Humboldt University of Berlin, where he had defended his thesis in 1963.

To this day, Biermann continues to prominently support persecuted political dissidents around the world. There's more than artistic solidarity that binds him with the author in exile Liao Yiwu (right), one of China's most famous poets, who spent several years in prison. In 2010 and 2011, they went on tour together through Germany.

A historical moment: On November 7, 2014, during a memorial ceremony for the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Wolf Biermann performed during a parliamentary session in the German Bundestag. He grabbed the opportunity to slam the "comrades" of the Left party, filmed by TV cameras. Speaker of the house Norbert Lammert reminded Biermann that he was only invited to sing.

The song that Biermann performed that day was personally selected by Norbert Lammert. It is one of his most famous ones, "Du lass dich nicht verhärten, in dieser harten Zeit" (Don't let yourself harden, in this hard time). As outspoken as ever, he described himself as a "dragon slayer," and the Left party politicians as "dragon spawn" and "a miserable remnant of what was fortunately overcome."

An exhibition at the Museum Folkwang in Essen shows how artists from Belarus are defending themselves against the regime in the digital realm. This picture by Antonina Slobodchikova shows the symbols of the strong trio of women who stood up to Lukashenko: Maria Kolesnikova's symbol is the heart, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya's is the fist, and the victory sign represents Veronica Tsepkalo.

A long trail of blood leads from a drawing of Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko in this work by Ekateryna Prokoyeba. His regime brutally suppressed last year's protests with arrests, torture and intimidation. Many opposition members and demonstrators were injured or ended up in prison. Those who could, fled the country.

Vladimir Tsesler is one of Belarus's best-known artists and a fierce critic of the regime. This poster commemorates the Ryanair plane that was forced to land, after which opposition member Roman Protashevich was arrested at Minsk airport. Lukashenko himself is said to have ordered the forced landing, on the grounds that there had been a report of explosive materials on board.

In early August 2020, Alexander Lukashenko declared himself the winner of a disputed presidential election. According to unofficial statistics, only 3% actually voted for him, thus establishing the meme "Sasha 3 percent," depicted here by artist Vladimir Tsesler. Independent election observers were not allowed.

As expressed in this poster by artist Hanna Murajda, the human rights situation in Belarus is alarming. Activists and journalists are severely restricted in their work and a number of organizations are trying to draw attention to the situation. A report by Amnesty International concludes that the judicial system is used to punish victims instead of holding perpetrators accountable.

White-red-white are the colors of the national flag of the first independent Belarusian state, which was proclaimed on March 25, 1918. Lukashenko abolished the flag in 1995, shortly after the start of his term in office. Today, they are the colors of the opposition, which risks its life in the fight against police violence and a corrupt regime. Hanna Murajda depicts the flag as a wall.

Avtozak, as the buses in Nick Osadchiy's image are called, are the stuff of nightmares for opposition members. They demonstrate power and represent torture and violence. People on the streets are dragged into such buses and taken to prisons. As a result, the term "busophobia" established itself among demonstrators. Anyone, regardless of whether they are politically active or not, can be arrested.

Anything in white-red-white can be perceived by the regime as criticism and resistance. This creates a state that goes against its own people, as this poster by Olga Balai shows. Under the title "Cultprotest.me — Artists for Democracy in Belarus," the Museum Folkwang in Essen is holding an exhibition of protest posters by young pro-democracy artists from Belarus that runs through October 24, 2021.