The Political and Social Dimensions of Art by Dr. Roxanne Farrar Assistant Professor of Art History and Interdisciplinary Studies Georgia College & State University Although not everyone agrees, all art has a political dimension. It might not be obviously political like propaganda, but I believe that because art is something that comes out of a social context, it has a political dimension. There are three types of political art. The first is art of protest. The artist might be upset with things that have happened or want to make things change, and creates art to protest the system. Art is often used as a form of political propaganda. An example of this kind of art is Gericault's The Raft of the Medusa. The figures here are slaves on a ship during a bad storm. There was too much weight on the ship; the sailors put the sick slaves on a raft, cut the rope, and let the raft drift away. There were over 100 people put on this raft and the artist has taken a great deal of license here. Of course, the raft had to be a lot bigger than that to hold over 100 people, but by the time the few stragglers were found, there were not that many who had survived the ordeal. Enough survived, however, to tell the tale and the story made headlines all over the world. The slave ship itself was called The Medusa. On a universal level, the painting protests man's inhumanity to man. On another, more particular level, the painting also protests the institution of slavery, an institution whose morality was being hotly debated at that time in Europe. Picasso's Guernica is another excellent example of art as protest. This image protests the bombing of a civilian population during the Spanish Civil War; this was the first time in the history of warfare that civilians were bombed and killed by an aerial attack. The fascist forces in the Spanish Civil War led an air raid on this poor little town of peasants called Guernica. The Spanish commissioned Picasso to do a painting for the Spanish pavilion in the World's Fair that was going to be held that year. The Spaniards wanted Picasso to glorify Spain, yet he created a wall-sized work of art that aired Spain's dirty laundry for all the world to see. Picasso was opposed to the fascists in the Spanish Civil War and this is a political protest, an indictment of the cruelty of those who harmed these innocent civilians. Picasso's art made the atrocity public, and the Spanish leaders were very angry at what Picasso had done. The painting is filled with all kinds of images that tug at your heart. It is meant to evoke great sympathy for the suffering figures. For example, there is a mother crying over her dead infant; there is a dead man who was apparently trying to defend maybe even his wife and child shown with his arm amputated and his sword is broken in two. These are horrifying images. Look at the horse. Picasso drew from the tradition of bull fighting in Spain; he was a great fan of bull fighting. One of the casualties in bull fighting is the horses, too. The horses are often gored in bull fighting. This horse has been gored with one of the spears that the picadors used to kill the bull. Somehow they missed, which sometimes happens in bull fighting. The horse is screaming out in its pain and its agony. Of course, the horse is often a heroic figure and here it is getting ready to die. Picasso used a lot of different symbols to protest this horrible event that occurred. Art can also be used to support the status quo. The majority of art falls under this category, particularly art that doesn't even seem political at first glance. Most art supports the status quo because by not protesting, it supports the system. One can see art supporting the status quo in images of rulers in world art. This is an example from the medieval African civilization of Benin. Benin is famous for its bronze work and this is the head of an Oba, or king. There are three main ways in which rulers are depicted in world art. One way is to distinguish rulers by the symbolism or the decoration that is used to portray them. This piece is a wonderful example of the use of decoration. The ruler is signified by what he is wearing. He has a very elaborate crown on his head and is wearing necklaces. This piece is from a the late period of art from Benin. In the earlier periods, the rulers were depicted with a couple of necklaces around their neck. Then as art developed, the art shows the rulers with necklaces almost to the chin; in the later periods of Benin, the necklaces cover the mouth. The necklaces distinguish the rulers from commoners. This is a general, his soldiers, and his attendants. Notice how elaborately they're dressed. These are obviously three very important men. This image illustrates two ways in which artists often depict rulers. One can see the use of elaborate decoration in the incredibly beautiful armor and their hats and other clothing. The image illustrates a second way in which rulers can be identified: the use of size to mark off a ruler. In art around the world, rulers are often shown larger than life. Notice that the general and his two attendants are larger than the little people around them; there is also another smaller figure floating up here. The smaller figures are foot soldiers, who are pawns in the art of war. The larger figures are the important people. This image is from Egypt and also illustrates the use of size to distinguish a ruler in art. The sphinx in front of the great pyramid at Giza is absolutely monumental. The body is of a lion, which is a royal animal for the ancient Egyptians, a symbol of everlasting life and royalty. On the body of this lion is the head of the pharaoh. There is some debate about which pharaoh it is. The Egyptians revered cats. They actually mummified cats as well as human beings. The cat is a sacred animal to the Egyptians. The lion was a symbol of royalty and also of eternal life. Often mummies of pharaohs were wrapped in lion skins because of the lion's symbolic attributes. The third way that rulers are distinguished is by repeating the ruler's image. This Temple of Ramses II illustrates all three ways. Here, there is the use of repetition, decoration, and size. The image of Ramses is repeated again and again. Part of the temple has been damaged, but there were originally four colossal statues. Ramses is signified in terms of decoration by the elaborate headdress he wears which is the crown of the pharaoh. It has symbols that refer to both upper and lower Egypt, which the pharaoh unites and rules. When one looks at the person on the bottom, one can see the enormous scale of the temple. Not only is the temple huge, but the pharaoh's image is even more magnified by having four figures of him. The image of Ramses is also repeated on the inside of the temple; he is the columns. These monuments were created in 1250 BC, and are over 3,000 years old. In China, the Callosal Buddha illustrates the use of size to distinguish an important religious leader. There is also some repetition of the image in the miniature Buddhas in the back. The image also makes use of decoration. Buddha is signified by certain symbols that show he is Buddha. First of all, Buddha is almost always shown with very stretched out earlobes. Before Buddha became a Buddha he was a prince in India, and princes there wore very heavy earrings that stretched out their earlobes. The earlobes show the Buddha's nobility, especially his nobility of spirit. Images of Buddha often have a little bump on the top of the head. The bump symbolizes the knowledge that he attained through enlightenment, or his cosmic consciousness. Buddhism began in India and that's where you see the earliest pictures of Buddha and then it spread to Asia through China, Japan, and other places. This is one of the larger images of Buddha. This image depicts is an emperor of ancient Rome, Augustus; the statue is called the Augustus of Prima Porta. The use of decoration is evident in the elaborate armor that Augustus is wearing. This is something that the emperor would probably not wear into battle. It is filled with all kinds of decoration and there are symbols that illustrate his accomplishments of events during his reign. Architecture can be used as propaganda, and often makes reference to the past. This is Thomas Jefferson's drawing for the University of Virginia, which he designed. The University of Virginia was one of the very first universities in the United States. In the university one studied ancient Greek and ancient Roman philosophy, classical history, literature, and other disciplines. Jefferson designed the building in the classical style. Look at the domed building with what looks like a Greek temple in the front of it. That's almost a direct copy of an ancient Roman monument, The Pantheon. Jefferson incorporated ancient designs very deliberately. Have you ever noticed that in even Milledgeville or almost any cities, or all cities you go to, the center of government is always in a very classical style? Look at downtown Milledgeville; the post office and all the downtown buildings are in a classical style. In Washington, D.C., all the buildings are in a classical style. These buildings all make reference to the classical age, and particularly to Greece where the idea of democracy first arose. In this was architecture is used to support the status quo; it makes reference to past times to kind of show that there is an ancient history to the way we do things today. Such techniques were not only used in America, but in many other places as well. These images are a drawing and a model by Adolf Hitler's court or state architect, Albert Spear. These images also make reference to antiquity. Hitler wanted Nazi Germany to be like ancient Rome. In his writings and in his art, he constantly referred to Nazi Germany as being like ancient Rome. If one looks back up to the head of Augustus above, one will notice that Hitler had his image made to look like a Roman emperor. This is Mount Rushmore by Richard Kline. This image shows Mount Rushmore actually being carved. The face is that of President Lincoln. The man almost hidden in the shadow under Lincoln's lower lip illustrates the gigantic proportions of the work. Art can also be used as social commentary, and often is very site specific in nature. Maya Lin's Vietnam Veteran's Memorial is an excellent example of social site specificity. This is a work of public art that is located on the mall in Washington, DC. The Washington monument is visible in the background here. The Vietnam War veteran's names are all listed on the monument. The monument needs to bewhere it is to work, in our nation's capitol. On the other hand, it is also about a social issue. This art is a social commentary; it makes people talk about ideas. Rather than taking a specific stance on an issue, it opens it up for commentary. Another artist who does a lot of social site specific work is David Hammons. This is a picture of David, an American multi-media artist. One of my favorite pieces of his is Higher Goals. David was invited to be the artist-in-residence for a neighborhood in New York City, a poor neighborhood which is mainly African American. As an African American artist, he was interested in going there. They asked him to come into their neighborhood and do a site specific work of art about their neighborhood, and what goes on there. This is a work of social commentary. David spent some time in the neighborhood to get to know the people. During the day he walked around all over the neighborhood and talked to people. He noticed that there were a couple of playgrounds with basketball courts and that all day long there were kids playing on these basketball courts. He went over to the kids several times and said what are you doing here, shouldn 't you be in school? The kids said, "No, I want to become a basketball star. That's my ticket out of the ghetto. I'm going to be a great basketball star someday." This disturbed the artist, and rather than try to preach to them David decided to do a work of art that he hoped would inspire them to go back to school. First, he studied African fabric designs because he wanted to try to inspire the children with the richness of their heritage. Then he got these telephone poles and started weaving paper in these beautiful designs that are inspired by African fabrics. The art is site specific because it is about people in the neighborhood and their cultural heritage. It also deals with the problems the face. The artist erected the telephone poles, and at the top are basketball hoops. The work is called Higher Goals. David did is playing with goals in two senses of the word. The basketball goals here are indeed higher in a literal sense, but he tried to send the message to the youths that they should have higher goals for their lives. Not even a great basketball star could shoot that hoop; the chances are one in a million that somebody could make that hoop. By the same token, the chances are one in a million that any of these kids would be able to become major basketball stars. This work is socially site specific it is about social issues in that specific place with those specific people dealing with those issues. All of these examples introduce one to the political and social uses of art, and to the devices artists use to convey these messages.   For further exploration of the use of art as propaganda, please continue on to Dr. Vess's unit on Art and the State.   Return to IDST 2310 Home Page Go to Dr. Vess's World Civ Virtual Library