The Art of Direct Action: Social Sculpture and Beyond

The Art of Direct Action: Social Sculpture and Beyond
Author: Karen van den Berg, Cara M. Jordan, Philipp Kleinmichel (Eds.)
Publisher: Sternberg Press
Language: English
Pages: 308
Size: 20.4 x 13.5 cm
Weight: 582 g
Binding: Softcover
ISBN: 9783956794858
Price: €22.00
Product Description

One of the most significant shifts in contemporary art during the past two decades concerns artists and collectives who have moved their artistic focus from representation to direct social action. This publication shows why this transition might change our understanding of artistic production at large and make us reconsider the role of art in society. The book gathers internationally recognized artists, scholars, and experts in the field of socially engaged art to reflect upon historical developments in this field and explore the role that German artist Joseph Beuys’s concept of social sculpture played in its evolution. The contributions provide theoretical reflections, historical analysis, and frame critical debates about exemplary socially engaged art projects since the 1970s in order to examine the strategies, opportunities, and failures of this practice.

Texts by Karen van den Berg, Mary Jane Jacob, Cara M. Jordan, Grant Kester, Philipp Kleinmichel, Kuda Production, Daniel Joseph Martinez, Marina Naprushkina, Dan Peterman, Rainer Rappmann, Pedro Reyes, John Roberts, Gregory Sholette, Caroline Tisdall, Anton Vidokle, Caroline Woolard.