Political Art – Does it make a Difference?

For an artist, it isn’t enough to envision, create, and wallow in paint up to your elbows. You have to read about art. Indulge your muse. Suspend your free time thumbing through art magazines to expand your knowledge. You have to scour what’s out there for knowledge and inspiration.

I’ve been doing just that by reading B.A. Shapiro’s latest novel “The Muralist.” Now I can see her in person on Tuesday, January 12 at the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers. Shapiro will be there in person to sign her new book and discuss its plot and characters with attendees.

"From the author of the New York Times bestseller The Art Forger comes a thrilling new novel of art, history, love, and politics that traces the life and mysterious disappearance of a brilliant young artist on the eve of World War II."

The book keeps me turning pages. Of course, it’s about a time period that has always intrigued me, and about the horrors that engulfed the entire world; but especially the Jewish people. Hitler and his minions hated, pursued, and incinerated millions of Jewish victims.


Shapiro not only covers the history well, but she knows art which makes the book that much more important on your lists of “must read.”

Many artists through the centuries have made political statements through their art, but most have avoided it as being too “in your face” or detrimental to their personal success. Some brave pioneers used art as a platform to voice their own strong feelings and to influence their audiences.

"Vik Muniz Photographer and mixed-media artist best known for repurposing everyday materials for intricate and heavily layered re-creations of canonical artworks. Muniz works in a range of media, from trash to peanut butter and jelly, the latter used to recreate Warhol’s famous Double Mona Lisa. 

"Layered appropriation is a consistent theme in Muniz’s work: in 2008, he undertook a large-scale project in Brazil, photographing trash-pickers as figures from emblematic   paintings, such as Jacques-Louis David’s “Neoclassical Death of Marat, and then recreating the photographs in large-scale arrangements of trash. The project was documented in the 2010 film Waste Land in an attempt to raise awareness for urban poverty. Muniz explained the work as a “step away from the realm of fine art,” wanting instead to “change the lives of people with the same materials they deal with every day.”

Others, like Thomas Hart Benton, passionately document history. War correspondents and artists fall into this category. This is why some people become angry when others in later generations wish to discredit or discard offensive images that were an actual part of history. Once we destroy history, we chip away at our own identities. History should stand, whether we like it or not.

Slavery is abhorrent to us now. It is a part of our history that we’re ashamed of and wish hadn't happened. But we can learn from our mistakes and vow never to make the same ones again. We can learn from the horrors of Hitler. The German people would like to bury this part of their past, but they haven’t. We and they must keep even the horrors of our past so that later generations will remember and perhaps be saved from repeating the same mistakes.

Our country seems intent on following in Europe’s footsteps. But, instead, we should learn from them:

Socialism has brought financial ruin. A flood of refugees has changed the face of many major cities across the globe.

The whole world is teetering on the brink of disaster. We would be fools to ignore what has happened and think we know best, that it can’t happen here because we’re just too damn smart.

All it takes is a few concessions here, a blind eye there, a white lie behind closed doors, and a willingness to ignore the obvious right in front of our collective noses.


If an artist or a writer can awaken us to the truth, all the better.

(Charles McNaughton, artist -- and below)

Who will stand when the time comes? To the brave go the glory!

What happens when societies crumble, when civilized peoples turn into depravity and violence? In the absence of experience or history to guide them, do  people tend to devolve into unschooled savages?

The author of Lord of the Flies, William Goldberg, seems to think so as do many anthropologists and historians. But it doesn’t take a doctorate or a Ph.D. to come to this conclusion. The average person through his or her own experience and education would probably agree.

I recall a science fiction show many years ago about how modern society had been obliterated through their own excesses. The few who remained had no books or knowledge to chart their course. Information was being withheld. There was no recorded history to make comparisons or to avoid calamity. There was a void of ideas, thinking, and motivation.

The wisdom of the ages had been destroyed. There was no compass of thought or inspirational examples. No past record to shed light on the passage of time and the future ahead. Only one person remained who held the key to rebuilding civilization. Why? Because he remembered; a flicker of light in the darkness set a chain of events moving that powered and re-invigorated the hunger for freedom that exists within each human being.

Now we have Isis that is ravaging brick by brick, stone by stone, the ancient antiquities of Iraq, Mosul and the entire Middle East. Ancient history, holy to many, is being crumbled, desecrated and soon-to-be-forgotten by the ages.

Biblical history is being wiped off the map and replaced with savage violence and destruction. Hatred-wielding thugs are seeking power and carving up the Middle East into bite-sized gulps, devouring the past and filling their bellies with blood and gore. The antiquities of history that gave this region some semblance of stability are being erased.

War mongers are single-minded when it comes to their ravenous power-grabbing intent. Their goal is anything but preserving history. Their enemy is tradition and rational thinking. They seek to change and eliminate the cherished, the courageous, the stalwart and strong that will not bend their knee without a fight.

Those who are unwilling to comply are crushed beneath a mindless authoritarianism. The valiant few struggle to protect the weak. They try to salvage and preserve the treasures of their civilization at all costs for the benefit of future generations where they will be designated heroes and heroines. But they are few and far between.

What about us? Who will arise to save our sinking society – our world? I doubt that they will be politicians who value votes and power far above culture and dignity. Where are the men and women who sense danger and see the signs of its progressing onslaught? Will they be people of faith, doctors, mathematicians, scientists, philosophers or artists? Will they stand up when others stand down?

When our ship of sale is sinking, will we have the courage to stand up and be counted? 

Watch as Isis destroys precious artwork, sculpture and the antiquity of the ages that go back to Biblical and historical times.

Famous Foreign Films bring Laughter, Soul Searching, and Insight

"Tansy's Pride"

I’ve always enjoyed foreign films from the plays and comedies coming via BBS to America’s PBS to imports on the big screen. Like Shakespeare’s dialogue, the subtitles are a temporary impediment. Once you get used to the rhythm of speech and the nuances of character, reading while watching is a snap.

My most recent movie was “In Darkness,” filmed in Poland with Jewish, German, and Jewish actors. My husband and I were able to absorb the interaction of three languages and experience Nazi anti-Semitism at its worst.

Crowded in an underground sewer, we see the stress of the hunted testing each individual’s character to the limits. Their lack of simple amenities, the stink of the sewer, and their fear when the sewers were searched increases tension.

Man’s inhumanity to man was the thrust of the plot; balanced by refreshing scenes where kindness and empathy offered the hope that led to a positive conclusion. The movie was an authentic glimpse into the horrors of being a Jew under Hitler’s rule and rise to power. His insatiable hunger to conquer the world became brutal; his reactions savage.

We can learn from foreign films. There are vast differences between a Hitler and a Gandhi, for instance. One worked for his own aggrandizement, the other for the good of his country and his people.

"Skudeneshavn Norway

On a lighter note, the film “Life is Beautiful” shows another side to grim evil: Guido, a Jewish Italian waiter is sent to a Nazi Concentration Camp along with his wife and young son. “Refusing to give up hope, Guido tries to protect his son’s innocence by pretending that their imprisonment is an elaborate game, with the grand prize being a tank;” An uplifting look at the courage and optimism of the human spirit.

Another favorite: “Amelie” played by Audrey Tauton helps us understand the life of ordinary people in France. Amelie’ finds a long-hidden trove of toys behind a baseboard in her tiny apartment. She is inspired to give them a new look and offer them to the poor children in her area. Her impulse at generosity “sparks more benevolent acts” not only in her own life, but in the community. Amelie’ is a celebration of life and love. It reminds us that small wonders surround us if only we will look. A joy to watch.

“Babette’s Feast is filmed in Denmark. Two sisters turn down a chance to leave their small Danish town to remain and take care of their Pastor father and his small church. They realize all too soon their dismal future and the fact that they will never marry.

Thirty five years later, a French woman seeks refuge after losing everything. The sisters take her in. Everyone in the village is skeptical of this new stranger. Babette seeks to win them over by preparing an extraordinary feast in gratitude. A heartwarming endeavor “eclipsed only by her secret.”

Foreign films show us that in spite of our differences, we human beings are more alike than we can even imagine. Perhaps that’s why I not only enjoy watching films made in other countries, but I adore painting exotic and endearing scenes of fellow human beings. I like to illustrate how beautiful people everywhere show goodness, bring laughter and comfort, and have the capacity to uplift us through their humanity.