BlogBack: On the Dearth of Political Art
South Carolina artist Tom Durham responds to Why is There No Current American Political Art?:
I do agree that on the surface there is no or very little political art on the scene. Why you should ask? First, galleries today are interested in sales, not art statements, so often they refuse to show or display art with any political or social content for fear of offending a potential client.
Second, many galleries are owned by conservatives who do not like art statements of any kind and believe that art and galleries should be decorative outlets. Third, museums today are afraid of losing any funding if they display art that has a political or social content. A good example is the new work of Botero, which was refused by many galleries and museums in the U.S. and was displayed first in Europe for over a year.
I do agree that relatively few artists today are making work that has a content that goes beyond their own self indulged life styles and many again are afraid to offend their potential clients. Artists make many art statements about art and often challenge the boundaries of what is considered art but they refuse to cross the line and make real statements about life and humanity. With all said, there are still artists making real art statements; they just have very few outlets to exhibit their work, which make them hard to find.
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LEE ROSENBAUM
I'm a veteran cultural journalist who writes frequently for the Wall Street Journal's "Leisure & Arts" page. I am a regular cultural contributor on New York Public Radio (WNYC). I've appeared as an art-market commentator on BBC-TV and have published numerous Op-Ed pieces in the New York Times and Los Angeles Times. I am author of The Complete Guide to Collecting Art (Knopf) and have lectured on cultural property issues at the New Acropolis Museum and the University of Pennsylvania, on deaccessioning at Columbia Law School and on museum governance at Seton Hall University. Contact me
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