Director's Note: The Role of Artists in Recording History
The Role of Artists in Recording History
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| Eli Wiesel (c) David Shankbone via Wikimedia Commons |
With the passing of Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel, I have been thinking about how the artist plays such an important role in impacting and preserving history. Wiesel, a Holocaust survivor, used his gift for language to write about his experience at Auschwitz for the sole purpose of recording this time in history so that others would never forget. One critic of his work Night wrote, “Wiesel has taken his own anguish and imaginatively metamorphosed it into art.”
There are many examples of how artists have and are working as activists against injustice or to educate the world about issues in a way that we can see, hear and most importantly, feel…
According to an article on the Huffington Post entitled “Artists Transform Heartbreaking Letters from Detained Migrants Into Gripping Works Of Art,” Visions from the Inside is a project that has enlisted 15 artists from across the country to create art based upon letters from immigrant women who have been detained in U.S. for-profit prisons. The purpose of the project, like Wiesel’s Night, is to “illuminate the horrific realities of life inside…detention facilities in the U.S., as well as the resilient spirit that keeps the inmates going.”
There are many examples of how artists have and are working as activists against injustice or to educate the world about issues in a way that we can see, hear and most importantly, feel…
According to an article on the Huffington Post entitled “Artists Transform Heartbreaking Letters from Detained Migrants Into Gripping Works Of Art,” Visions from the Inside is a project that has enlisted 15 artists from across the country to create art based upon letters from immigrant women who have been detained in U.S. for-profit prisons. The purpose of the project, like Wiesel’s Night, is to “illuminate the horrific realities of life inside…detention facilities in the U.S., as well as the resilient spirit that keeps the inmates going.”
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| Micah Bazant's work from Visions from the Inside |
One artist, Micah Bazant created a work that depicts a mother and child holding each other in a muted cell. He explained in his artist statement, “There was so much unsaid in it (the letter): so much strength, suffering and history ... When I imagined what I wished for this mother and her child, I imagined a mighty waterfall breaking through the prison walls.”
Art 180, a Richmond, Virginia-based youth arts organization, has been working closely with the City of Richmond, the Rise for Youth organization and others to begin a conversation about juvenile justice. An extremely cool project recently completed with students from the Richmond Juvenile Detention Center, had teens write out a long list of stereotypes about incarcerated youth that they wanted to transform. The paper was then shredded and paper pulp was created from it for making handmade paper. The new paper will become the first page of the students’ journals. This creative hands-on project allowed youth to express themselves and communicate to the public about stereotypes relating to juvenile delinquency.
Closer to home, Martinsville native, Johnny Selman, who is the owner of New York-based Selman Design, has launched #ProjectPeacePost. Selman and his colleagues are using their artistic abilities to highlight the impact and courage of peace advocates from around the world. Selman’s illustrations have included the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet, Jose “Pepe” Mujica, and Pope Francis.
Art 180, a Richmond, Virginia-based youth arts organization, has been working closely with the City of Richmond, the Rise for Youth organization and others to begin a conversation about juvenile justice. An extremely cool project recently completed with students from the Richmond Juvenile Detention Center, had teens write out a long list of stereotypes about incarcerated youth that they wanted to transform. The paper was then shredded and paper pulp was created from it for making handmade paper. The new paper will become the first page of the students’ journals. This creative hands-on project allowed youth to express themselves and communicate to the public about stereotypes relating to juvenile delinquency.
Closer to home, Martinsville native, Johnny Selman, who is the owner of New York-based Selman Design, has launched #ProjectPeacePost. Selman and his colleagues are using their artistic abilities to highlight the impact and courage of peace advocates from around the world. Selman’s illustrations have included the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet, Jose “Pepe” Mujica, and Pope Francis.
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| The Pope, Johnny Selman |
In a 1978 piece entitled, Why I Write, Wiesel, wrote, “The only role I sought was that of witness. I believed that having survived by chance, I was duty-bound to give meaning to my survival, to justify each moment of my life.”
Regardless of whether it is the written word, a painting, a play, dance, music…there are numerous examples of how artists have used their creativity to inspire change and foster understanding. Through some of the darkest times of humanity, artists have been there to shed a light. Just another reason why Art Matters.
Regardless of whether it is the written word, a painting, a play, dance, music…there are numerous examples of how artists have used their creativity to inspire change and foster understanding. Through some of the darkest times of humanity, artists have been there to shed a light. Just another reason why Art Matters.
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