To ask "When is art political?" is to ask what conditions of artistic production and reception make it possible for art to be political. As conditions change, "political art" may no longer be political, "non-political" art may become political, and so on. Through short, lively presentations and discussions with the audience, this two-day conference establishes a shift in approach by leaving the quest for an essence of political art aside in order to inquire instead into the ever-changing conditions that make art political.

This two-day conference is hosted by the School of Critical Studies at the California Institute of the Arts. The conference is supported by the MA Aesthetics and Politics program, and is made possible with additional support from the Transdisciplinary Aesthetics Foundation and the Equity and Diversity Program at CalArts.


Program

Friday, November 6
REDCAT
(Tickets required)

10:15am
Introductions, Arne De Boever and Michael Kelly

10:45am–noon
Leandro Katz, "'Please, No Slogans'"
Bérénice Reynaud, "The Polis Behind the Image"
Moderator: Beatriz Cortez

2–4pm
Edwin Hill, "Hatin' on Charlie: The politics of the punchline against Charlie Hebdo in French rap in the wake of the January 2015 attacks"
Gil Hochberg, "Nothing To Look At: On the art of witnessing"
Mimi Thi Nguyen, "Beauty and Failure"
Moderator: Armen Avanessian

4:30–6pm
Introduction, Arne De Boever
Lecture, Thierry de Duve, "Art as Symbol of the Politically Good" 
Conversation with Martin Plot


Saturday, November 7
West Hollywood Public Library
(Free and open to the public)

10:30am
Introductions, Arne De Boever and Michael Kelly

10:45am–noon
Jill Bennett, "The Politics of Mental Experience: Neurodiverse Aesthetics"
Davide Panagia, "On the Unusability of Art for Politics"
Moderator: Sidsel Meineche-Hansen

2–4pm
Roundtable conversation with all participants
Moderators: Arne De Boever and Michael Kelly


The MA Aesthetics and Politics offers a one-year degree that encourages interrogations of the arts and politics in an expanded field. Students specialize in Critical Theory, Global Studies, or Media and Urban Studies, and get up close and personal with key contemporary artists and thinkers, including this year's visiting faculty member Armen Avanessian and theorist-in-residence Thierry de Duve. 

We are currently accepting applications for Fall 2016. Financial aid packages are available in the form of scholarships, grants, and teaching assistantships.

For general questions, or to schedule an information session, please contact Admissions Counselor Seth Blake at sblake@calarts.edu or T +1 661 253 7716.

Originaly published by art&education