Paradox of Political Art

Very interesting post even if you don’t agree with all the points he is making. Posted on April 7, 2004 by Dyske Suematsu, a cultural critique.

Dyske write about the historical roots of the political art as a conceptual art movement that was born in the late 60’s. He share his opinion about the effectiveness of political art, and claim that artists cannot be exempted from the suspicion of having impure motives when dealing with political issues.

“If artists are not required to prove the integrity of their motives, why should anyone else be? If we were to speculate hidden motives of government institutions and private corporations, it is only fair that we also speculate the hidden motives of the artists who criticize them.”

Another question that Dyske have about political art is its effectiveness. He claims that by taking positions as artists, they necessarily distance themselves from the real nitty-gritty of politics, he says that to him, what is interesting is not so much the content, but why they choose to use art as a platform for their fights.

Read the original article by Dyske Suematsu at DYSKE.COM