The biggest message that I acquired from the reading “Why Artistic Activism” is that art and activism fuel each other: art gains more meaning and value, while activism gains more energy and dimensions. Combining these two means greater support from society, because art is easier to perceive than complicated texts and professional literature. It also deals with pathos and thus people take an issue more seriously. In modern society, it spreads quicker. And, it is a way to bypass censorship in a repressive regime, which I’m seeing a lot right now. For instance, the green ribbon project in Russia is a form of anti-war protest, where people just hang green pieces of fabric or ribbon everywhere they can on the streets. Such activism is hidden and communicates in the first place to like-minded people, showing them that they’re not alone in this. Interestingly, almost all art that I’ve observed lately is a form of activism, yet I didn’t know there’s a term dedicated to it.

In the second article “10 Female Performance Artists You Should Know, from Ana Mendieta to Carolee Schneemann,” one thing that drew my attention was dance as a form of artistic activism. Because I grew up dancing, I’m especially sensitive to performances and I can translate them easily into a story or a message. Through the example of dance, I could realize why artistic activism works so well — there are just certain things about our feelings and emotions that cannot be explained another way.