Culture Wars: Cases Illustrating the Relationship Between Visual Art and Politics in Various Parts of the World

Abstract

This chapter focuses on Culture Wars, which illustrate well the problematic relationship between visual art and politics in various parts of the world. Most societies have actually created very specific rules for artistic expression specifically protecting freedom of expression in art. However, in reality art is never free from ideological attacks and the easiest way to attack art without openly attacking also the freedom of expression is to argue that this particular type of objectionable art does not deserve to be called art. The mechanism in modern societies increasingly is that politicians target art without impunity. Their aim is to use art as an easy target and this way they can demonstrate to their supporters their strong moral convictions. For politicians whose supporters are assumed to share dislike of most types of contemporary art for reasons of doubting their ideological message, it is easy to argue that any piece of art is offensive. Of course, most pieces of art are always offensive to someone and if you really try you can easily find something to loathe in most everything in the world. In this chapter I cover contemporary Russian art, the art of President Trump and the South Korean exciting political art and art of politics. Finally I move to Nazis and art and various attempts in the world to control art through politics and other means.