In the reading ‘Why Artistic Activism” nine reasons the writer says art has no clear target and often only offers perspective and new ways to look at the world around us. I agree, Activist art is a good way for people to express exactly how they are feeling, but artistically it also allows a chance for those who are not so verse in the issues of society to get a glimpse at real issues articulated in a portrait or performance leading them to potentially be more curious and pushing themselves to be more informed. I felt a great example of this was Tania Brugera incorporating her audience in her art by allowing them to speak and being escorted off by uniformed men. Giving her audience a first-hand account of how socialist countries work allowing them to see what it feels like to be silenced and limited.

When I was reading this week’s reading, I realized just how inspiring and thought-provoking art can be. Some of history’s most important events have been depicted through art. While we have books and papers from that era, I believe art speaks for itself. Art lives on in museums for all time, to be examined by future generations who may interpret it differently. For example, in the Renaissance, The Catholic church was always depicted in art, and during that time, people began to depict various aspects of life. It weakened the Catholic Church’s position. Taboo topics and new ideas are sparked by art. That’s what makes art so influential.

I was mesmerized by the art pieces shown in “10 Female Performance Artists You Should Know.” It was unusual, but I liked how different they were. I found it interesting when Caroline Schneeman said, “Art history is dominated by images of nude women, created by men.” Then the article said her art was controversial because of her nudity. It reminds me of a discussion I had in my media class about the male gaze. Men love to profit off of women’s bodies, but it’s not okay when a woman does it. What makes the male gaze or voyeurism so appealing is that the women are usually unaware. My professor pointed out that many nude portraits of women do not show them looking back. They’re looking away. We talked about how it was because it gave men pleasure to know they were seeing something they shouldn’t for their own sexual pleasure. If the women in those portraits were staring right at them, it would intimidate them. I think that is why Schneeman’s art was considered controversial: it intimidated men to see a woman use her body as art.

Antione Malave Reflection #12

Art can be anything which is the problem and the solution in some cases. For every banana being taped to a wall at an art Basel there is a crack is wack mural or a Guernica. Art to me should evoke something in you , something emotional or something that will leave you stuck in thought days after you have seen it. I gravitate towards artistic activism , especially when its graffiti or evokes any sort of emotional response and brings awareness to a specific situation. The marriage of both the accessibility of art to the world and conveying a social message is brilliant when its done correctly.

Art is something beautiful because it allows us to express whatever we are feeling in a beautiful way. Even though when we share our art we have one idea in mind and are portraying a very specific kind of feeling, art is very subjective, and people can interpret it in millions of different ways, but still relate to the original sentiment of the artist. I completely agree with the article that artistic activism is an incredibly powerful form of art because it creates spaces for minorities who have been silenced throughout the years. Also, it has a very specific purpose that is communicating the interests and needs of entire communities in an unconventional way, which transmits feelings to others and creates or grows empathy towards the artists and their community, About the female performers, I believe that it’s amazing how they use their creativity to give messages about women’s oppression that our society needs to hear. I was impressed by the work of Tania Bruguera who let people in the audience talk on stage for one minute and then people dressed as soldiers escorted them out of the stage. This makes the person who is experiencing that and the audience feel something similar to what Cubans living in a dictatorship felt and reflect on it. Each one of these women is very admirable because it’s not easy to allow yourself to be that vulnerable and share your feelings with others, but they did it for a very personal, and also political, reason, which has created a positive impact on our society

In this week’s reading we read about the connection of art and activism. The revolution has many different positions. There are the storytellers, the front liners, the healers, the educators and the Artists. Like the article explained. The folks that Affect people to create change and  inspire others to feel and in turn take action. Art will  always be a powerful tool to incite change. It has always been my favorite medium. Something about listening to a spoken word piece or looking at a beautiful mural, watching a dance piece or just freestyling some rhymes with friends  fills me up with the emotions they were trying to convey. Activism is taking action against injustices and systems of oppression and art causes us to feel inspired to take that action. A beautiful catalyst. The artist’s tool is the weapon whether it be a pen, marker, spray can, hands, feet or mouth. Creation is the death of oppression. When we create a piece that transmutes  our experiences we let people look into our lives, it enables us to be vulnerable in a powerful and human way, it galvanizes the collective to “feel”. We naturally are a collective community although capitalism and individualism at times mutes that state of being, it’s who we are at our core and to live on this earth inherit the responsibility of ensuring we all have the best quality of life.  Art can motivate the masses to choose peace and it can be radical enough to start revolutions that fact alone conveys the power it holds.

While reading this week’s readings I realized that there are many ways the activism could be shown through paintings. Why Artistic Activism: Nine Reasons by Stephen Duncombe and Steve Lambert was a great read because it emphasizes the difference in how artistic activism looks like in some scenarios such as political activism by acknowledging that political landscape is also a cultural landscape it opens to many innovative ideas of expression or scraping and wiping out what we thought of politics. Out of the whole reading that was the subject that enlightened me the most because it was a new way of thinking of two subjects that most really put together such as art and politics. As for 10 Female Performance Artists You Should Know, from Ana Mendieta to Carolee Schneemann by Karen Chernick, it provides new information on artist that I did not have much knowledge about. To be honest I am not really an art person, nor do I proclaim to have knowledge on interpreting what the artist is trying to say in the painting, but I do observe and like certain artist work based on color and what I can understand from it. Provided with all these amazing artists in the article with some information on what type or painting they use to express themselves and what they experience, to me Ana Mendieta’s “Silueta Series” (1973–77) was one of my favorites. Overall, I enjoyed this week’s readings and will be looking into artistic activism more and the artists who share their experiences and thoughts on matters surrounding artistic activism. 

If the personal is political, and art a form of personal expression, it seems natural that art and activism would go hand in hand. My art history class somewhat rushed through the feminist art movement due to it being the end of the semester, so I didn’t get the in depth look I had wanted to. That said, some of the artists in 10 Female Performance Artists You Should Know were familiar to me, but most were not. I would live to learn more about Ana Mendieta, her “Silueta Series” seems quite moving. I’ve also loved learning about Judy Chicago, her art, but also her as one of the driving forces of the feminist art movement. I found the perspectives in Why Artistic Activism? interesting, and things I hadn’t thought of before. I can definitely see how artistic activism is made for this era in which so much media is consumed. If properly harnessed, social media can be a great vehicle for change, and a great image or visual all the more gripping. I also appreciated the writers thoughts on how artistic activism creates openings specifically by its undefined nature. One can see how something so open for interpretation would be thought provoking and hopefully carry through to meaningful conversation. Most art is made to be approachable, and in this context you can imagine how this might make for friendlier, less divisive conversation.