Political Graffiti & Street Art

[Fast Eddie]

As the world is apparently getting closer & closer to total political dementia and mental midgets lead the way, I would ask for advice from the forum on who are the best political pieces/artists out there. I can think of Shep's money in politics & corruption prints from 2016 or many of Banksy's works (Napalm, Applause, etc). I am not as prepared and knowledgeable as many on here, so I am surely missing the full picture. Help appreciated.

[Fast Eddie]

www.inquiriesjournal.com/amp/1699/a-beautiful-mess-the-evolution-of-political-graffiti-in-the-contemporary-city

Form Cornell International Affairs Review

[Daniel Silk]

I like art that is about a important issues, but I don’t like it when artists are basically campaigning for a political party.

[moron]

Jan 12, 2019 23:19:07 GMT 1 Fast Eddie said:

As the world is apparently getting closer & closer to total political dementia and mental midgets lead the way, I would ask for advice from the forum on who are the best political pieces/artists out there. I can think of Shep's money in politics & corruption prints from 2016 or many of Banksy's works (Napalm, Applause, etc). I am not as prepared and knowledgeable as many on here, so I am surely missing the full picture. Help appreciated.

 Fekner 

[moron]

Jan 16, 2019 13:13:44 GMT 1 Daniel Silk said:

I like art that is about a important issues, but I don’t like it when artists are basically campaigning for a political party.

 Do you mean whoring for a political party in order to be more popular or opportunising whatever demo is being organised and promoting their wares art and themselves by virtue signalling like for example Sheperd fairey.

    Banksy too to a certain degree rides on the back of socio political issues to raise his profile altho he has made a fool of himself a couple of times.

[slevin]

Ai Weiwei has political stuff. Also the recent pieces by Zedsy have some political issues behind the message

[Leo Boyd]

KLF
sorry I mean the K-foundation... no i mean the K2 Plant Hire Ltd.
Or do I?
Anyway this stuff. I'd say this is pretty political
www.mumufication.com/about/

[Fast Eddie]

We are not talking about designing campaign ads. But political parties "appropriate" policy issues, so artists that care about those issues will necessarily fall in that attraction field. Shep Fairey did it with Obama. He also showed how massively powerful the visual medium is to connect to voters. There are other examples, like Martha Rosler for the Vietnam War.

[Fast Eddie]

Jan 16, 2019 13:36:00 GMT 1 moron said:

Jan 12, 2019 23:19:07 GMT 1 Fast Eddie said:

As the world is apparently getting closer & closer to total political dementia and mental midgets lead the way, I would ask for advice from the forum on who are the best political pieces/artists out there. I can think of Shep's money in politics & corruption prints from 2016 or many of Banksy's works (Napalm, Applause, etc). I am not as prepared and knowledgeable as many on here, so I am surely missing the full picture. Help appreciated.

 Fekner 

I did not know John Fekner. Thank you.

[Fast Eddie]

Jan 16, 2019 16:30:10 GMT 1 Leo Boyd said:

KLF
sorry I mean the K-foundation... no i mean the K2 Plant Hire Ltd.
Or do I?
Anyway this stuff. I'd say this is pretty political
www.mumufication.com/about/

Seems morbid. I do not get this. Do you do anything with a political or social message, Leo? 

[lacklisted]

Try this project. The actions they undertake are awesome as well as the artist that are inspired, both nationally and internationally. 

brandalism.ch/artists/

[Coach]

If interested in poilitical art, the series of books “the Art of Rebellion” by Christian Hundertmark is a good place to start.

I also enjoyed “Subvertising” by Hogre.

[Ruff star]

www.positive-propaganda.org/index-pp7.html

[Leo Boyd]

Jan 16, 2019 17:10:25 GMT 1 Fast Eddie said:

Jan 16, 2019 16:30:10 GMT 1 Leo Boyd said:

KLF
sorry I mean the K-foundation... no i mean the K2 Plant Hire Ltd.
Or do I?
Anyway this stuff. I'd say this is pretty political
www.mumufication.com/about/

Seems morbid. I do not get this. Do you do anything with a political or social message, Leo? 

Ah I find their new work quite uplifting. They are creating a pyramid of the dead that celebrates normal people rather than kings or heros or rich people. That is pretty political.

[Fast Eddie]

The refugee crisis, climate change, rising inequality, political corruption, proxy wars fought at the expense of local populations. These are themes you see in Ai Weiwei, Banksy, Fairey, Pejac, etc. These artists find images that resonate and fuel and raise the level of our debate.

Others focus on escapism - the whimsical, the toys, the colorful shapes, the witty one-liner - because sometimes you feel f**g overwhelmed by all that, and you just need to breathe.

The thread is about the first group.

[mojo]

Peter Kennard & Cat Phillips

urbanartassociation.com/thread/146062/kennard-phillips-capital-damage-petrol




War Boutique


Dr D

[lacklisted]

Jan 16, 2019 17:22:14 GMT 1 Coach said:

If interested in poilitical art, the series of books “the Art of Rebellion” by Christian Hundertmark is a good place to start.

I also enjoyed “Subvertising” by Hogre.

Agree, Hogre he's special. His 2017 work in Rome and subsequant exhibition in London's War Gallery was brilliant. 

[Carl Cashman]

Jan 16, 2019 13:13:44 GMT 1 Daniel Silk said:

I like art that is about a important issues, but I don’t like it when artists are basically campaigning for a political party.

Where is that line drawn though ? What is expressing your opinion on important issues and what's campaigning ?

[NYart]

I guess taking for example Shepard Faireys ‘We The People’ campaign vs Obama’s Hope poster could be a good distinction. Supporting a cause versus promoting an individual.

If they’d like to use their influence to help out a cause that is important to them, all the power to them. But I don’t feel that staring in a movie or being a successful artist qualifies you to tell people who they should vote for.

[mojo]

Billy Childish link

American Politics

UK Politics

[Carl Cashman]

Ironically, for centuries pushing a political agenda was the only way to be an Artist! Painting for the church was the only way to earn money.

[mojo]

Jan 17, 2019 17:17:12 GMT 1 NYart said:

I guess taking for example Shepard Faireys ‘We The People’ campaign vs Obama’s Hope poster could be a good distinction. Supporting a cause versus promoting an individual.

If they’d like to use their influence to help out a cause that is important to them, all the power to them. But I don’t feel that staring in a movie or being a successful artist qualifies you to tell people who they should vote for.

In the same sense I don't agree that inheriting billions of offshore $/£ from your dad should qualify you to tell people who you should vote for either!

[NYart]

Jan 17, 2019 17:33:19 GMT 1 Carl Cashman said:

Ironically, for centuries pushing a political agenda was the only way to be an Artist! Painting for the church was the only way to earn money.

Depending on how you look at it that may not have changed entirely. Back then the church and nobility were the only ones with disposable money where they could afford the luxury of art. Nowadays the corporations likely employ the majority of artists as graphic designers and what not. I’d have to imagine the vast majority of freelance artists income comes from businesses and the upper class. You’d know better than I would the ways an artist can make it nowadays but certainly many artists rely on similar people/entities of the old days.

[unkle77]

Mau Mau has political messaging.. here are my Pinocchio's

[Inknart]

Cleon Petersen comes to mind.

[Wisconinla]

Are we trying to think outside the box?

If not, Blu, Noname, and Escif have consistently powerful messages.

[Guy Denning]

All art is political. Admittedly not all art is politically didactic, and not all artists are political activists. But all art is political. Even the artist that claims to not be concerned about society is attempting to take a distinct position of alienation or autonomy and that is a very specific political standpoint from which to present art.

guydenning.org/2017/01/27/talk-given-at-hartlepool-art-gallery-art-and-politics/

[Rouen Cathedral]

This is an interesting topic.

If you look back some of the big names have always made political works and even with specific connections to a party or to a certain side of a 'debate' or event. Johns, Rauschenberg, Lichtenstein, etc.

Even Fairey's Hope Obama as of more recent. However, these works all seem 'different' then a lot of the political works these days...

All of these works no matter the actual 'side' of the politics they support seem more 'art' to me then 'political'. Its hard to determine why, but I think it has to do with the feeling associated with the art and the 'intention'. I would venture most of the works by those above are 'positive' and while they may support a certain idea, party, etc. the work is more or less positive.

It seems like 'political' work this day of age is very charged. I think it has to do with the 'outrage culture', the negative aspects brought to the forefront which then leads to the works seemingly being more one-sided. Political work these days seems to be meant to enrage, anger, and insult as opposed to in the past where it seemed to be less so.

For example, Lichtenstein or Rauschenberg created multiple works supporting the Democratic Party. Now an artist is more likely to create a work against a party rather then in support. This greatly effects the connotation of the work and the response of a viewer in my opinion. A pro-democratic Lichtenstein poster likely does not enrage a Republican. However, an anti republican poster likely would. Artists now are moving towards the anti works.

I don't think Republicans had strong reactions to Fairey's Hope Obama poster, but I'm sure many had strong reactions to Ching's ripoff Kavanope poster. Basically the same 'art', but the intention very different.

[Fast Eddie]

Jan 18, 2019 13:17:31 GMT 1 Guy Denning said:

All art is political. Admittedly not all art is politically didactic, and not all artists are political activists. But all art is political. Even the artist that claims to not be concerned about society is attempting to take a distinct position of alienation or autonomy and that is a very specific political standpoint from which to present art.

guydenning.org/2017/01/27/talk-given-at-hartlepool-art-gallery-art-and-politics/

I see this point, but let me give you an example of how such approach seems not especially useful, as it masks a lot of interesting variation. Take Banksy's multiples. Applause or Happy Choppers are clearly political pieces with pertinence to foreign policy and international relations. NOLA or GWRB are not. They are more expressions of sentimental introspection. There are clearly gradients, but they are obviously more focused on the individual than the collective. The examples above (thanks to all knowledgeable users!) really touch the latter element.

[Fast Eddie]

Not mine, but this is also a debatable example in my opinion.

It is obviously a political subject, but Pure Evil's Nightmare series seems to have little to do with politics overall. So the context does seem to matter.