Activism vs. Antagonism:

Where once the socio-political clout of art seemed hemmed in by fashionable theories of aesthetic formalism, today’s artist is engaged in a wide variety of practices, many of them bearing little resemblance to traditional artistic mediums. Where once the disenchanted modernist stood ready to safeguard the aesthetic from the corrupting encroachments of a market-driven culture industry, today’s artist is all too eager to venture deeply into the waters of political activism, social engagement, and public dialogue. And, where the critic’s purview was once limited to those objects designated as art by the sanctioned space of the museum or the gallery, today’s critic must contend with the proposition that art is principally an activity, taking the form of shared meals, literacy workshops, community gardens and the like. Accordingly, this shift in contemporary art has led many critics to ask, in one form or another: Where is the art? How do I interpret and evaluate this activity as art?