Citation:
Date Presented:
February 7, 2013Abstract:
Why study art from a crisis? During the 2001 economic crisis in Argentina, there was an unusual outpouring of art and artistic involvement in protests and political organizations. Many young artists formed collectives in order to share art supplies and also political ideas. At a moment of frenzied social activity, dozens of new collectives emerged or grew in membership. Their art was closely linked with political movements, street protests, and popular assemblies. This thesis focuses on three particular collectives: Grupo Etcétera, the Taller Popular de Serigrafía (TPS or People’s Silkscreen Workshop) and Buenos Aires Stencil. Grupo Etcétera and TPS integrated into popular movements as surrealist performance artists and a pop-up silkscreen workshop, respectively. Buenos Aires Stencil silently filled the walls of the city with politically acerbic stencils. All three groups worked on the streets, interacting in different ways to represent the moment of the crisis. Cultural production during the 2001 crisis has received considerable attention by scholars both inside and outside of Argentina. Activist art has provoked an interesting phenomenon in scholarship called “militant research,” a method of researching social movements. The thesis examines the interests and expectations of scholarship on the “work” of art during the crisis and argues for the autonomy of art in situations of social revolution. Any and all comments are appreciated, especially in regards to phrasing and adapting the central argument.