The Art of Activism Chapter 3

The Art of Activism

Chapter 3

Quote: “We should not seek to replicate the examples of history but to learn from them.” PG.  86

    History, history as a whole, can contribute to society and impact our lifestyle in many ways. Many of these actions have made us either free or we are still yet recovering from our mistakes.  However what makes history so valuable is the content and consequences that might have occurred a long time ago, but yet gives us information of the things that went negatively so we could avoid it or positively for us to improve it. The chapter's goal was to share a bit of the activism’s history and how it has been within us since the beginning of times, therefore giving us a better understanding on a specific topic and warning us how carefully we need to analyze things before making a decision.  

Quote: “Using parables like these, Jesus created an opening for his audience to make the message their own. Unlike a list of grievances or demands, easily understood and just as easily ignored, the parables asked listeners to puzzle through their mysteries and meanings.  PG. 90

    Although many people may not consider themselves a religious person, they can't deny that Jesus understood the art of being an activist and successfully spread his beliefs throughout the nation. Chapter three informs us with several examples in how Jesus uses different methods to communicate his message, one of them consisted in speaking between the lines, and letting the public interpret their own conclusions. This empowers the audience to have a freedom that many authorities don't often give, and lets us solve a problem that many people aren't capable of. Within every parable it carried a purpose and message that consisted in communicating a change towards a lifestyle or attribute. This also gave the audience to interact with Jesus and have a deeper connection with him by simply just letting us have the struggle to solve his riddle of his puzzle. 

Quote: “In order to be heard and understood, an activist needs to learn how to use popular culture, but they also need to know how to transform it so that it speaks to and for their own cause.” PG.93

    The author best describes this idea by demonstrating how Jesus' arrival was with a donkey, creating the illusion of manifesting a popular belief from Jerusalem that a savior will come from a simple beast. This signifies the representation of the author's statement by giving us the hint that we need to uncover how our culture can benefit us if we use it correctly. Many people can be easily manipulated by being under fear or pressured, leading for Jerusalem citizens to fall into the conclusion of Jesus being their savior.  This same example can also be applied with any generation that is in need of change, all they need is to be more involved with their culture and beliefs and apply a solution that the public needs or wants. Often people use positive or negative results caused by other people, and manipulate the situation towards their advantage, these types of performance can potentially benefit all of us or harm us. In Jesus casse, he uses this belief to spread the word that he's the one and only that can save them from their sins, and needs. 

Khan Academy Performance Art An Introduction Webpages

Quote: “Without the audience it has no meaning” Marina Abramović

    I agree with her statement due to the fact that without any viewers, without any emotion that could interact with an art piece it’ll be a simple canvas with marks of colors on it, however we the audience often give the meaning towards an artwork. This also could be related with several things in life that humans do for living, a film, music, or artwork whose only purpose is to be seen, heard or felt by the public, these feelings are a product that was manifested during the interactions with a performance. The intentions for Mariana are not to undervalue an artist's work or themselves, since without them there wouldn't be any art to be appreciated for, but instead it's a collaboration that unites all of us that makes an art piece feel more valuable. 

Quote: “I'm going to make this piece to how far the public can go” Marina Abramović (Rhythm O, 1974)

    Out of all the performance artists that were presented throughout the course, the one that shocked me the most was Marina Abramović with her performance called Rhythm O in 1974. She decided that her next work will consist in simply just letting people do what they pleased with her body for six hours. Her purpose for this experiment was to see people’s limit on someone else.  Throughout the video it showed how she started off with a clean body, and how slowly the public started to interact with her. However, as time went by her body became a written wall, and as if the physical abuse wasn’t much, Mariana experienced a near death attempt by someone in the public. By the end of the day she felt destroyed in realizing how there's no limit for society, and how she felt used and abused in a disgusting manner. Also the people that harmed her the most were long gone since many of them felt embarrassed to confront her after the show. This just goes on to show how we often treat other people as an object or taking advantage of. 

Yoko Ono - A Groundbreaking Artist, Activist and Fighter

Quote: “ One of her most famous artworks, Cut Piece, still remains as a precursor to a myriad of feminist and body-centered art pieces and performances.” 

    Yoko Ono's performance was similar to the Marina Abramović experiment;they both willingly stood still for several hours letting the public do as they pleased with their bodies. The major difference between these two is that with One’s performance people were less aggressive compared to Marina Abramović's performance. Also their reason behind doing these types of experiments were different from each other, since Abramović's intention was to demonstrate how many people and evil are limitless when it comes to having total control over another person. On the other hand Yoko Ono’s purpose was to comunica a message to the world in how she was against racism, against sexism, and against violence.

Quote: “She allowed her Japanese education and American artistic formation to merge into a new mindfulness.” 

    As a former immigrant I'm able to relate with this statement because I do as well see the difference between my home country culture and being in the United States has changed my mindset. Although this difference may set us apart, it could also merge us together to create something new by combining our home traditions with newest ones. Exploring this aspect of creating art in this way may open new ideas and new experiments that many people may have not explored, and yet share something with the public from both worlds.   

Hispanic Executive | Interview with Shaun Leonardo

Quote: “ Primitive Games (performance)”

    After investigating a bit more about Shaun Leonardo's “Primitive Games” work, I found that the reason behind doing this type of performance was to demonstrate how gun violence does not only impact someone's life but can scar society as well, hints why he decided to express himself with body language. For someone who isn't well aware of the purpose why people are touching each other pretending to be fighting might say it's a bit ridiculous, but after exploring a bit more of the reasoning why, it shows to prove that they are simply just expressing themselves with their emotional pain that were kept hidden for a long time. Many people find their own way in expressing themselves, Leornando’s objective was no different, his intention for the audience was to let them puzzle around with the performance by letting them solve what the participants were trying to express, and the reasons behind their body movements.This piece also involves many emotional parts, and conflict between parties that do not find agreement between each other. 

Quote: “we feel compelled to act, act, act—to respond, respond, respond—and artists don’t operate best in that rhythm.”

    This quote may be interpreted in many ways, but I personally feel what he was trying to communicate is that  an artist may sometimes have expectations with society, but in reality he/she can make artwork about anything, at their own pace. Sometimes an artist may affiliate themselves with current events that might be happening during their time, giving them the inspiration to create a work, but in some other times an artist simply wants to create or recreate an art piece that may not include any political or contributional statement. He also mentions how every artist may encounter that it's hard to keep up with society, therefore it doesn't hurt to sometimes just focus on the artpiece itself and finish it up at their own pace.