Module II

Participating in any environment means that there has to be a structure in place that allows for the interaction of such thoughts; it has to allow for the construction of those thoughts, and it means putting ones self in a slightly venerable place.  While art and politics seem like separate entities, they in fact, have a lot of intersection. Artists participate in making art and when they exchange it for money, the state enforces the laws it has created concerning a taxable income for the artist.  Is this true always?  Art can be seen as a commodity, to be sure, and as such is susceptible to the inherent property rules that the state instills.  On page 165 of Art and State, the author states, “Like other participants in the making of art works, the state and its agents act in pursuit of their own interests, which may or may not coincide with those of the artists making the works” (Becker, 2008).

Another part to the social practice of art comes into play when we take a look at who actually wrote some of the structures put into place for the artists and art venues.  For example, Bill Ivey talks about the how the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations helped to craft “America’s first effort at wholesale intervention in the arts” and how “they laid out the boundaries that have enclosed our cultural-policy agenda over the past half-century” (Ivey, 2005).  This has been a great model in the nonprofit growth of the country, and was formed from two hardy individuals wanting a positive change; however, it is getting to be dated, and may need a revisit at some point, hopefully by individuals that want to continue to make a difference with art and art organizations.  After all, power in the wrong hands can have a lot of negative side effects.  When “commercial” organizations have the power to tell the public what to look at, when to come see it, what it is about, then there is a shift in the art that is being produced.  Thank you, consumerism.  Power can be utilized through visual means; in fact, it is one of the more powerful tools that any kind of company can use.

Art can also be seen a propaganda, as we have seen esp. throughout the history of the 1900’s, I’m thinking of WWII posters.  Art has become a tool that the government uses to facilitate feelings, either for or against, an opposing force.  These images are then treated as the reflection of governmental thought, which has the ultimate goal of affecting its citizens.  These images also reflect political interests, which forms a sort of political aesthetic for the public.  This is one of my favorite topics, personally.  War propaganda posters are some of my favorite pieces of art.  Having and creating a visual of what each country wanted to portray is rather potent, and here we can see examples of how power is linked through these types of images and how society reacts and examines their own way of living in response to these images.  I think any kind of poster that tries to rally people together (hopefully for the greater good) has meaning or some entity behind it; it forms a tangible quality to the art, something you can feel, even more so than other artworks.

There can be this unspoken power in transmedia environments, because of its organization: the interfacing that happens when a person is in a personal space, looking online and viewing a page is different than if that person was in a public place looking at a poster.  It keeps the viewer in an informal and less “aggressive” place, which leaves room for the viewer to make controlled and/or thoughtful decisions rather than maybe rash or uneducated ones.  The transmedia environ has to be aesthetically pleasing and have current and relevant information too.  If an organization has poor skills at crafting or hiring multi-media personnel, then they are certainly without a necessary public attention grabber.

Becker, H. (2008). Art and the state. Art worlds. Berkeley: University of California Press.Art and the State

Ivey, B. (2005, March). America Needs a New System for Supporting the Arts. In The Chronicle Review. Retrieved October 16, 2013