Art as Propaganda

Last week's visit to the Holocaust Museum to view its current exhibition, "State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda," really showed how much needs to be taken into consideration when planning an exhibition. Particularly for an institution like the Holocaust Museum, which must deal with increased sensitivity given the subject matter, exhibition planning can be a tricky business.

"State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda"

Courtesy of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

http://www.ushmm.org

I thought that the exhibition was fascinating, if not a little overwhelming. I spent roughly 45 minutes in the exhibition, and I only made it through 3/4 of it. Granted, I am a "reader", and tend to stop at most if not all of the wall labels, but I could have easily spent another 30 minutes.

While discussing the exhibition with the curators and my classmates, it struck me how much propaganda still dominates much of our society. From last election's Obama Hope posters, to the current Occupy Wall Street posters, art can definitely become an influential tool.

Interestingly, both the Obama Hope posters and the Occupy Wall Street posters were created by Shepherd Fairey. Like the Hope poster, Fairey continues to create posters with overtly political themes. The Occupy Wall Street poster looks to the past for inspiration, reminiscent of the 1960s and 1970s. This poster, like many of Fairey's work, rouses emotions and encourages the involvement of a younger generation. It is meant to be all-inclusive, open to people from all backgrounds.

But is it propaganda? It simplifies a complicated issue, it is biased, and it employs symbols to achieve a particular goal. But to me, "propaganda" has such a negative connotation. But advertising is just that: a method employed to sway public opinion. Can something be both art and propaganda, though? Art often has an opinion -- political, religious, etc., and it intends to influence people.

"Let the Occupy movement's camps and protests and marches continue generating such art -- art that inspires interracial unity where it may not yet exist, art that reminds us of the voices unheard, art that galvanizes practical social change when nothing seems to give, art that, in Du Bois' words, tries to make the world both beautiful and right." - CNN, How Art Propels Occupy Wall Street