I am for an art that is political-erotical-mystical, that does something other than sit on it's ass in a museum.
Claes Oldenburg
I clearly remember the moment when I realised that art could be political. I always knew it was personal. I painted in that way. I used art as a way to express myself. My paintings were generally abstract and full of movement and colour and I could use the process of painting to deal with something, disregarding the outcome. When I went to work in community development I found myself using art in a social way. It was a tool I used when working in groups. I found it opened people up and could tackle issues with such ease and so effectively. When I went to college to study community art it blew my mind to realise the potential that art had for bigger issues.
It seems so obvious now, probably the first cave paintings were pro-democracy messages. Even crafts like quilting were used by women to highlight the need for equal rights. Advertisers, more than likely, stole their trade from artists with a social conscience. Today I know very few artists who use art to share a message. I don't know if this is because I am not that aware of them and have my head in the clouds or because art isn't been used that much for purposes outside the gallery. It is such a shame that art is so hidden in galleries.
I rarely work with others artists. Most of my work is with people who never use or view art. I try to emphasise creativity over 'art' as it has become such a scary word and has connotations of high values and intellect. And who wants to associate with 'high values' or 'intellect'? I am going on a search for artwork that speaks value. Art that offers a social critique or a political message (political is also a word that has lost the run of itself, running far away from everyday people, which is where it squarely belongs).
I came across a Chinese artist awhile ago, called Ai Weiwei, who had an exhibition in the Tate Modern in London. His work was called 'Sunflower Seeds'.It was more then one hundred million individually made and hand painted porcelain seeds. Visitors were encouraged to walk over, touch and experience the seeds. It was in an attempt for people to contemplate mass consumption among other things. It was refreshing to see this and realise that artists doing this work are being recognised.
Above is the first image I ever did that was related to my view on society. The drawing is of a magpie dropping the central bank (Irish building) into his nest alongside a ring. The bank was to represent what was going on in Ireland at that time, cheap money available to anyone, and the ring was representing what we were doing with the money, buying 'bling'. I wanted to show the insignificance of it all with the predominance of nature. As a society we value cash and status more than nature, yet nature really has more power over us than we think.
Let me know if you find any artists using their art for more than just sitting "on it's ass in a museum".
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