Art for good

I really enjoyed the book presentation by xtine burrough and learning about art as a catalyst for social change. When she talked about the emerging technologies that different artists used when collaborating for this project, my favorite one to hear about was the seed. I personally find the seed to be such a fascinating thing. It is tiny, and with a little care and nourishment it can grow into something so powerful and fruitful. That being said, when not treated right, it can retreat and now allow other people to benefit from it. Not being treated right can be equated to not treating the Earth right, because it is under these conditions that a seed can grow. We humans must be careful, or we might soon be answering to seeds. Does this not make seeds fit the very definition of enacting social change? They will not work for us in the future unless we change something for them now, and create an environment that better suits them.

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Source: xtine burrough

Another aspect of the presentation I really enjoyed was the discussion of radicalization of art, and how it can be a cooperative event, rather than trying to trump someone else. The nuances of this that were brought up, such as struggling with questioning authority without being punished, and struggling with the process have been parts of my life since I was younger, and I think many of our formative years. This is where I think art for social change can be really impactful for children. I came upon a source that discusses how art can be used to teach children empathy as well as sensitively teach them about topics that need attention in our greater world, like refugee crisis’ and gun violence. It can be taught at age appropriate ways using coloring, word matching and poetry. These kinds of resources give us the ability to engage an entire additional generation, and prepare young children to be empathetic worldly citizens. I think it can also help alleviate some of the things xtine brought up in her presentation about the fear of getting in trouble and experimenting, because it gives children permission to do these things (within limits) without worrying about these things. I think this would be a really formative tactic to employ to young school children that would help proliferate the message burrough is trying to send in this book. 

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Source: xtine burrough
 
I was also really taken by Margaretha Haughwout’s portion of the presentation. Something I really care about is the environment, and her discussion of the coven intelligence program, and how there is a spellweaver function where you can receive textiles and plant networks based on a spell you produce really stuck with me. I am not sure how deeply I believe this work to be true, but it brings back a really traditional love and respect for nature and plants that existed many years ago. Today we appreciate how indigenous cultures use the land for all that it gives them, or how medicine used to be primarily apothecary based, but we are so used to the synthetic world that we live in that I think people find it hard to love and appreciate plants for not only all they have given us, but all they have inspired.
 
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Source: Margaretha Haughwout
 

Works Cited

 

burrough, xtine & Walgren, Judy. Art as Social Practice: Technologies for Change. Routledge, 07 Mar., 2022

 

Margaretha Haughwout. https://beforebefore.net/words/

 

Shade, Pam. “The Supernatural Side of Plants.” Cornell University, 27 Oct., 2020, https://cornellbotanicgardens.org/the-supernatural-side-of-plants/

 

“Trends and Forces Impacting the Future of the Seed Industry.” Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 25 June, 2020, https://cban.ca/wp-content/uploads/CFIA_ACIA-14651503-v1-Looking-Ahead-Trends-and-Forces-Impacting-the-Future-of-the-Seed-Industry.pdf

 

“Use Art to Learn Empathy and Create Social Change.” Doing Good Together, https://www.doinggoodtogether.org/dgt-newsletter/art-empathy-social-change