Public Art & Activism
KEYNOTE: Lucas Cowen, Curator of Public Art, Curating for the Public: The Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy
Subject Fields:
Cultural Studies,Urban Studies, Heritage and Museum studies Art History, Media & Visual Culture Studies, Women & Gender Studies, and Studio Art with focus on art as activism
Public art has been used to raise awareness, to shift ways of thinking, and to protest. In the past, this work bypassed galleries, museums, and formal art institutions and instead found its home on streets and public squares. Today, public art is increasingly showcased on social media. Transcending geographical borders, in the past two decades art of various mediums has been generated and displayed on social media networks in the hopes of creating a better world.
The current political climate in the United States, combined with human rights issues in various parts of the world have created an influx of activist art with strong public presence. Additionally, as our culture becomes more and more visual, activists increasingly turn to art to draw more attention to their political agendas. The 6th Art History Undergraduate Symposium at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth aims to examine the intersections of public art and activism. We invite students of various disciplines to share their thoughts on the topic of public art as activism. Papers may focus on specific historical or contemporary examples, but may also address broader thematic questions such as: • How has activist art evolved since the invention of social media?
• Is creating art activism enough? Does it truly affect broader socio-political issues?
• How is activist art similar and different across varying geographies?
• Is there a line between activist art and propaganda?
Please send a 200-word abstract (along with essay title and a short resume) to the president, Mariah Tarentino (mtarentino@umassd.edu) by March 13th, 2017. Those whose proposals are accepted will be notified shortly thereafter and requested to submit full papers and PowerPoint presentations no later than April 5th, 2017.