“Introduction to Activist Art”
“Works can challenge racism, sexism, authoritarian regimes, or war. They usually have a common dominator, which is a focus on political and social issues with the intent to change or influence public opinion by confronting people with an unjust or problematic status quo.”
Art is such an interesting concept. From a first glance, it can just seem like something pretty, with lots of colors, and it looks cool. When we take the time to closely look at the art and the story behind it, we come to find that much art has more depth than what meets the eye. What did the artist choose, the sets of colors, the shape, the shade, the setting, all of these are questions that can lead us to the inspiration and story of an artistic piece. Especially with pieces which boldly declare their voice on political views, it can be difficult to understand at first but can be very vocal.
With artists such as Banksy and the Guerrilla Girls, activist art might seem like a contemporary concept. But examples of political art can also be found as early as the 18th century.
It amazes me that art has been a form of vocalization for a long period of time. I had always thought that activist art was a contemporary form, but hearing that there are forms of political art even in the 18th century is surprising. Using art as a form of expressing meaning has been a foreign concept to me. Seeing these expressive arts- dating back to the 18th century is truly eye catching.
“Why Artistic Activism?”
Its [arts] effect is often subtle and hard to measure, and confusing or contradictory messages can be layered into the work. Good art always contains a surplus of meaning: something we can’t quite describe or put our finger on, but moves us nonetheless.
Art has so many layers of concepts. It’s always interesting to hear the origin of an art piece and what it meant to the artist. Some art we find beautiful can have a meaning that is contradicting to the art itself. One of my favorite art pieces is called Anguish by August Friedrich Albrecht Schenck. The art features a mother sheep grieving over her dead lamb as a murder of crow surrounds her. What I love about this art is how expressive the piece is. You can clearly see the anguish in the mother sheep as you see her cold breath, indicating that it is winter. The murder of crows adds a dark layer to it, as they wait for the mother sheep to leave to ravage her lamb. I can write much more about the piece, but I don’t want to fill the entire blog page :)
We may like to think of politics as a purely rational business, where sensible people logically discuss and debate the issues at hand, come to a reasoned decision, and then judiciously act. Certainly this is how politics has been taught to us in our civics classes.
It’s ironic how politics is supposed to be of high importance and needs a serious approach to it. As of recent events, with the Trump and Biden presidency, we see a completely different side of politics. We were taught that we are supposed to look up to our president, but how can we do so when the way they act does not fit the standards we have been taught. One of the many ways we find out about these ridiculous events are through memes and art that replay events from the political world. It’s almost like exposing how unserious politics can be sometimes.
“8 Artists Using Their Creativity to Drive Activism”
In every fight for justice there is a story to be told. Art is one of the most powerful tools we have for communicating those stories, sharing lived experiences, and fighting for global change in the mission to end extreme poverty and the systemic causes that drive it.
Art is one of the widely accepted forms of activism. On social media you are likely to come across a form of activist art. When you go outside you are likely to find activist art. Art gives us a way to tell the world loudly about our stories. It makes sense why art is such a powerful form of communication that lets our stories live on for a lifetime.
Yoko Ono's art is a universal embrace, a call for love and understanding that resonates across cultures and generations. Through her work, Ono's legacy continues to promote peace, encouraging us to embrace compassion and unity in our collective pursuit of a better world.
When I think of activist art I mostly think of vulgar and controversial art pieces. Most of the time, I expect to see art with depictions of some form of violence or vulgarness. Yoko Ono’s art is quite the opposite of that. Her art promotes activism but leads with a more compassionate stance. Her art is colorful and depicts peace and harmony. Sometimes we can get caught up in the action and lead with harm. Yoko Ono reminds us that the end goal is peace and to lead with compassion.
No comments:
Post a Comment