What is Francis Alÿs known for?
Francis Alÿs is known for using poetic and metaphorical techniques to highlight the political and social realities of his city. Often, the issues he addresses range from national border politics to globalism and areas of conflict in his community and the effects of modernism.
The new wave of hip-hop has arisen a woke generation. From it, Xiuhtezcatl — seventeen-year-old Indigenous rapper and activist — has emerged, stirring the comatose with his music.
From performing at the Standing Rock encampment with Immortal Technique and Nahko to leading the Youth v. Gov. lawsuit against the Federal Government, Xiuhtezcatl’s actions show his music is more than words.
During the economic crisis of 2008, bankers in Spain took advantage of the economically disadvantaged, and the artwork La Fiera en Sevilla, or the Wild Animal in Sevilla in English, brings attention to this money-centric act from the bankers. La Fiera refers to the bankers at the time that used predatory methods in their actions to forcibly evict poor people from their houses.
Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, better known to the world as Bad Bunny, has once again proven that his artistry goes far beyond reggaeton and trap. On January 5, 2025 — the eve of Puerto Rico’s cherished Three Kings Day — the Puerto Rican superstar released DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, an album that both celebrates his homeland and delivers a sobering message about its uncertain future.
Brian Larney is an AI.tivist or American Indian artist. He is also an Artivist where he performs Artivism, a concept that includes art as a form of activism.
On the eve of Wells Fargo’s annual shareholders meeting in San Antonio, TX on Tuesday, home defenders, students, community groups, and activists in ten cities took peaceful action against the bank. Petitions signed by thousands of people were delivered to Wells Fargo branches and offices across the country calling on CEO John Stumpf to change the bank’s predatory practices.
Introduction: The Ambulatory Free States of Obsidia
The Ambulatory Free States of Obsidia is a tiny, Matriarchal, Micro-nation located at the confluence of feminism and geography.
Grand Marshal Yagjian's Great Vision for The Ambulatory Free States of Obsidia came in 2015 when its land claim was 'liberated' from a former lover’s house for a greater purpose.
On October 6th, 2007, we beat a new world record. Thousands of people in cities all across Spain simultaneously shouted: “You won’t own a house IN YOUR WHOLE FUCKING LIFE!” The decibels radiating from this collective cry were registered by an interactive meter, baptized “The Fuck-o-meter” for the occasion.
It’s the radiant baby, the barking dog and the dancing man; the badges and the t-shirts; the unmissable mural spelling out CRACK IS WACK. Keith Haring’s career was short but spectacular, and he leaves behind a lasting legacy. From his chalk drawings in city-wide subway stations, to his collaborations with the superstars of his day, Haring’s life was founded on a belief in the power of people to change the world.
At first, you don’t know what you’re looking at. A gray expanse of uneven geometry surrounded by undulating brown. Shift your perspective a bit and it might be a close-up of a distressed textile, with subtle hues and textures surfacing as your eyes adjust.
And then the horizon comes into focus. Now you know where you are. In the distance are the classic jutting buttes of Monument Valley, familiar to anyone who’s ever seen a John Ford Western.
"State Names" is a painting by Jaune Quick-To-See Smith. You immediately recognize the outline of the United States, but at the same time, that map is obscured and made difficult to read. It’s at once recognizable and not recognizable. She describes her use of icons as a ploy, as something that brings the viewer closer, and they think they know what they’re going to see.
The collective Ndaku Ya La Vie Est Belle, a group of Kinshasa street performers turn their bodies into living sculptures, and use them to political ends. Among the artists is Jared, who regularly takes to the streets dressed as Robot Annonce. The costume, made from broken radio parts, is designed to raise awareness of fake news. “People receive so much incorrect information and many inaccuracies are spread. I want to fight this,” says Jared.
In the summer of 2011, squatters take over an unused building, once an animal shelter, and begin renovating it into a social and cultural center for a neighborhood on the outskirts of Amsterdam. They call it Op de Valreep ("in the nick of time").
February 24, 2023 will mark one year since the Russian invasion and occupation of Ukraine began. Russia is attempting to take over Ukrainian territory and destroy its rich, vibrant culture. Ukrainians are fighting for their country and right to exist as free, independent people. For months, Ukrainians have endured relentless bombardment, destruction, and hardship.
After winning the TED Prize on March 2, 2011, the French-artist JR launched the Inside Out Project, in his first TED Talk. Using his own artistic practice as inspiration, this participatory platform helps individuals and communities to make a statement by displaying large-scale black and white portraits in public spaces. Through their “Actions,” communities around the world have sparked collaborations and conversations.
It's an evocative image — and it was intended to be: Diana, Princess of Wales, wearing a protective visor and flak jacket, walking through a live minefield in Huambo, Angola. The image of the princess, at the time one of most famous women in the world, surrounded by danger, made headlines across the world.
La Casa Invisible project was started in 2007 in Malaga, Spain, when a group of socially involved participants squatted in a run-down building, aiming to eventually claim the legal rights to the property (Moor & Smart, 2016). The space was opened to local artists and creators, quickly becoming a hub for free local music, performances, and seminars as well as creating an important meeting space for social groups (Moor & Smart, 2016).
Jacques-Louis David was an active member of the French Revolution, and his works often depicted his political affiliations. David’s painting The Lictors Bring to Brutus the Bodies of His Sons portrays the scene of Brutus, an important figure of the Roman Republic, reacting to the death of his sons. Since they wanted to overthrow the government and restore the monarchy, Brutus ordered their death.
Two children stand back-to-back, but they are facing two very different Chicagos. One child blows bubbles in a park under blue skies. The other wears a gas mask against a backdrop of scrap metal and billowing smokestacks.
It was October 31st, 2012, when a new artist appeared on social media. In a series of video clips, she proposed with a soft and slow speech that Peru hide its poverty. Her project consisted of installing vinyl pieces to avoid what she called "the visual pollution." She titled the project Don't be poor, be fashion(able).
The Beehive Design Collective is a wildly motivated, all-volunteer, activist arts collective dedicated to “cross-pollinating the grassroots” by creating collaborative, anti-copyright images for use as educational and organizing tools. We work as word-to-image translators of complex global stories, shared with us through conversations with affected communities.
This action was suggested in the workshop assembly by a neighbor of Arrayán street itself. At the end of this street giving the market there was a wall in a state of collapse that
concerned the neighborhood. On several occasions, either neighbors or from the same Peña Bética in front of them, they had
given by the City Council, but without results. And every day having to go all the way through that gorge with two
“My intention was not to disappear in the environment but instead to let the environment take possession of me” Said Liu Bolin. With his strong photography, Bolin vanishes into the city, creating a powerful statement about our relationship, as humans, to our surroundings.
LONDON (AP) — An anti-migration protest outside a hotel housing asylum-seekers in northwest England turned violent and resulted in the arrests of 15 people, local police said Saturday.
The Merseyside Police department said a police officer and two civilians sustained minor injuries during the disturbance on Friday night in Knowsley, a village located 13.5 kilometers (8.4 miles) from the city of Liverpool.
The structure teeters over fields of knee-high grass, looking like a cross between a camping tent and a giant wedding cake. Eleven stories of dark red wooden rooms, diminishing in size as they ascend, balance atop one another, seemingly held together by only the thicket of cords that stretches from the peak to the ground.