05 - How Art Advances Activism REVISE OR NEW ARTICLE.pdf

0 1 2 3 Art is a timeless means of sending a message, something we know quite well in our industry, but art can also be used as the voice of change and the voice of movements. As we have seen throughout history, art helps to arouse emotions in an audience. It can connect people to a cause in a dee...

0 1 2 3 Art is a timeless means of sending a message, something we know quite well in our industry, but art can also be used as the voice of change and the voice of movements. As we have seen throughout history, art helps to arouse emotions in an audience. It can connect people to a cause in a deeper way than if they look at a situation or cause strictly intellectually and focus on the facts. Protest art includes the creative works produced by activists and social movements. It is a traditional means of communication, utilized by a cross section of collectives and the state to inform and persuade citizens. It can come in many forms, from the symbols and colours that unite a cause, to the grassroots street art expressing repressed people, to the artwork produced in a time period reflecting the feelings of the day. Art has always had the power to... Unite us•.• Divide us••• Since art, unlike other forms of dissent, requires few financial resources, and less financially-able groups can rely more on performance art and street art as an affordable tactic to get their message across. People may not have access to large platforms, media outlets or high quality materials, but by picking up scrap paper and paint or markers they can create powerful visuals and messages to express their point. Social movements produce such works as the signs, banners, posters, and other printed materials used to convey a particular cause or message. Often, this art is used in demonstrations or acts of civil disobedience. These works tend to be ephemeral, characterized by their portability and disposability, and are frequently not authored or owned by any one person. symbols of activism The various Qeace sy:mbols and the raised fist (used as a symbol to fight oppression) are two examples that highlight the democratic ownership of these signs. They have origins but have so widely been used in different causes that they are not owned by one group or revolution. In the 1950s the "peace sign", as it is known today, was designed by Gerald Haltom as the logo for the British CamQaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) a group at the forefront of the peace movement in the UK. It was later adopted by anti-war and counterculture activists in the US and elsewhere. The raised fist is currently being used today in the Black Lives Matter movement but it has been used many times before throughout history. It was first popularized during the SQanish Civil War of 1936-1939, when it was used by the ReQublican faction as a greeting, and was known as the "PoQular Front salute" or the "anti-fascist salute". The right fist salute subsequently spread among leftists and anti-fascists across Europe. It was again used in 1948 by Taller de Grafica PoQular, a print shop in Mexico that used art to advance revolutionary social causes. Its use spread through the United States in the 1960s after artist and activist Frank Cieciorka produced a simplified version for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. This version was subsequently used by Students for a Democratic Society: and the Black Power movement. categorizing activist art There are endless ways that art is used to both reflect and impact current events and it seems that there are three main types of activism in art. 1. The art of people in protest • Homemade protest signs/banners • Graffiti 2. Artists in protest • The posters of a movement or group • Performance art • Pop-up installments 3. "Fine arts" reflections on the times • More traditional works of art fighting against or making a commentary on the ruling class/constraints of the day https://adhomecreative.com/vibe/our-blog/activism-art/