Art, philosophy and change: towards a critical literature review

Clive Cazeaux

‘The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point, however, is to change it.’ So runs one of the most famous quotations from Karl Marx, from his ‘Theses on Feuerbach’, published posthumously in 1888. The relationship between art, philosophy and politics in the history of ideas is complex: from Plato, through nineteenth-century concepts of dialectic and drive, to critical theory and socially-engaged practice. Suppose you were an artist-philosopher wanting to direct your practice towards a change in society. What kind of practice would you adopt? What kind of change would you make? How would you evaluate the change? This presentation looks at how one might begin to create a critical literature and visual review of the territory.

Image credit: NL Architects, Moving Forest, 2008. Part of the Urban Play event in Amsterdam, Netherlands. 100 trees, 100 supermarket trolleys. http://www.nlarchitects.nl

Celf, athroniaeth a newid: tuag at adolygiad llenyddiaeth feirniadol

Clive Cazeaux

‘Dim ond mewn amrywiol ffyrdd y mae’r athronwyr wedi dehongli’r byd; y pwynt yw, fodd bynnag, yw ei newid. ’ Fel y dywed un o ddyfyniadau enwocaf Karl Marx, o’i ‘Theses on Feuerbach’, a gyhoeddwyd ar ôl ei farwolaeth yn 1888. Mae’r berthynas rhwng celf, athroniaeth a gwleidyddiaeth mewn hanes syniadau yn un cymhleth: o Plato, drwy gysyniadau o dafodiaith a gyriant o’r bedwaredd ganrif ar bymtheg, i theori feirniadol ac ymarfer sy’n ymgysylltu’n gymdeithasol. Tybiwch eich bod yn artist-athronydd a oedd am gyfeirio eich ymarfer tuag at newid mewn cymdeithas. Pa fath o arfer fyddech chi’n ei fabwysiadu? Pa fath o newid byddech chi’n ei wneud? Sut fyddech chi’n gwerthuso’r newid? Mae’r cyflwyniad hwn yn edrych ar sut y gallai rhywun ddechrau creu llenyddiaeth feirniadol ac adolygiad gweledol o’r diriogaeth.

Credyd delwedd: NL Architects, Moving Forest, 2008. Rhan o ddigwyddiad ‘Urban Play’ yn Amsterdam, Netherlands. 100 coeden, 100 o drolïau archfarchnad. http://www.nlarchitects.nl