Culture and Consciousness: Designing for Social Justice

1. Eleanor—Jayne Browne | Printmaking Class Notes | Culture And Social Consciousness. Design For Social Justice 1
What does it mean to be part of a
greater whole? How does our world
view impact what we understand
about who we are and how we relate
to others? And, how can we
become more aware of all the ways
we are part of an interrelated, global
community? Through social
consciousness. This is “thinking”
and “believing” (consciousness)
shared by individuals within a
society.
Many creative producers, artists in
particular, synthesise their works
from cultural observations; or in
other words “tackle” issues they feel
need to be communicated to
mainstream society in an attempt to
create consciousness about their
concerns— some of which are
outside common frames of reference,
in an attempt to broaden society's
priorities.
Art, and design, can transcend the
barriers of language, race, ethnicity,
gender and even religion. It can have
a variety of effects on people’s mood,
attitude and state of “being”. During
the 19th century, art—making began
to take on a more blatant socially
conscious role, often reflecting the
plight of the poor and criticising
governments.
Because the scope of art is very wide,
besides the self—expression of an
artist, it can be seen as a means of
communication, a tool to raise public
awareness, a trigger to bring changes
in society. And, since its main
purpose is to create an emotional
reaction in a person, it is a valuable
tool to communicate messages and
draw people’s attention to critical
issues such as the environment, for
example. In short, art and design
can serve to protect, and enhance,
both our well—being and our world.
Social justice art, and arts for social
justice, encompasses a wide range
of visual and performing art that
aims to raise critical consciousness,
build communities and motivate
individuals to promote social change
through generating awareness.
Examples of visual and performing
social justice art can include drawing,
painting, sculpture, wall murals,
graffiti, film, theatre, music or dance.
The Chicano Art Movement
initiated by Mexican—American
artists to establish a unique artistic
identity in the United States was
heavily influenced by the Chicano
Movement which began in the 1960s.
This movement worked to resist and
challenge dominant social norms and
stereotypes of the time. Some issues
the movement focused on were
awareness of collective history and
culture, restoration of land grants
and equal opportunity for social
mobility. Throughout the movement,
and beyond, Chicanos have used art
to express their cultural values, for
protest or for aesthetic value. This
art genre has evolved over time to
not only illustrate current struggles
and social issues, but also to continue
to inform Chicano youth and unify
their culture and histories. Chicano
art is not just Mexican—American
artwork: it is a public forum that
emphasises otherwise “invisible”
people. Much of Chicano art is in
the form of wall murals and Diego
Rivera was one leading figure who
helped to establish Mexican muralism.
Mexican muralism describes the
promotion of (wall) mural painting
starting in the 1920s, generally with
social and political messages as part
of efforts to reunify the country
under the post Mexican Revolution
government. It was headed by “the
big three” painters Diego Rivera,
José Clemente Orozco and David
Alfaro Siqueiros. From the 1920s to
1970s a large number of murals with
nationalistic, social and political
messages were created on public
buildings, starting a tradition which
continues to this day in Mexico and
has had impact in other parts of the
Americas, including the United
States where it served as inspiration
for the Chicano Art movement.
The prominent Mexican painter
Diego Rivera, 1886—1957, helped
establish the Mexican Mural
Movement in Mexican art and
between 1922—53 he painted murals
in Mexico City, San Francisco, Detroit
and New York. In 1931, MOMA in
New York held a retrospective
exhibition of his works.
In 1907, Rivera traveled to Europe
to further his art studies. There, he
befriended many leading artists of
the day including Pablo Picasso, he
also viewed influential works by Paul
Gaugin and Henri Matisse, among
others. In Europe he had some success
as a Cubist painter, but the course of
world events would strongly change
the style and subject of his work.
Inspired by the political ideals of the
Mexican Revolution (1914—15) and
the Russian Revolution (1917), Rivera
wanted to make art that reflected the
lives of the working class and native
Culture And Social Consciousness.
Design For Social Justice
Cultural Identity Indicating Time in
Perpetual Movement, Eloy Torrez
(a painting of several historic figures from
Mexican and Chicano cultures: the mural's
intention is to inspire people in the
community by giving them role models
from the past).
Diego Rivera

2. Eleanor—Jayne Browne | Printmaking Class Notes | Culture And Social Consciousness. Design For Social Justice 2
peoples of Mexico. He developed an
interest in making murals during a
trip to Italy, finding inspiration in the
Renaissance frescos and on returning
to Mexico, Rivera began to express
his artistic ideas about Mexico. He
received funding from the government
to create a series of murals about the
country's people and its history on
the walls of public buildings. In 1922,
Rivera completed the first of the
murals at the Escuela Nacional
Preparatoria in Mexico City.
In the 1930s and 40s, Diego Rivera
painted several murals in the US.
Some of his works created uproar,
especially Man at the Crossroads
created for the Rockefeller family in
the RCA building in New York City.
The mural featured a portrait of
Russian Communist leader Vladimir
Lenin who he included to portray the
turbulent political atmosphere at the
time. The Rockefellers disliked his
insertion of Lenin and asked him to
remove the portrait, however Rivera
refused, resulting in the Rockefellers
requesting him to stop work on the
mural permanently.
When Rivera went through a slow
period, in terms of work, and had no
major mural commissions he devoted
himself to painting other works.
Married to Mexican artist Frida
Kahlo, Rivera and his wife decided
to divorce in 1939. The couple were
famous for their stormy relationship
and not surprisingly, they re—married
the following year.
In 1940 Rivera returned to murals
with one made for the Golden Gate
International Exposition held in San
Franciso. In Mexico City, he spent
from 1945 to 1951 working on a series
of murals known as From the Pre—
Hispanic Civilisation to the
Conquest. His last mural was called
“Popular History of Mexico”.
The public persona of Diego Rivera
and the heroic status bestowed upon
him in Mexico was such that he
became the subject of myth in his
own lifetime. His period of work in
the United States enabled him to
explore an industrial society and to
analyse the role of the artist within
it. The murals in the United States
served to clarify his understanding
of his native Mexico and expanded
his personal philosophy and were
the source of inspiration for many
of his later works.
Diego Rivera's life was filled with
contradictions— he was a pioneer
of Cubism, an art movement which
attempted to use art as a kind of
exploration of consciousness and
became one of the leaders of the
Mexican Mural Renaissance; yet he
was a confirmed Marxist/Communist
who received commissions from
America's corporate establishment.
He was a revolutionary artist and a
firm champion of the workers with
a deep fascination of the form and
function of machines pronouncing
engineers as America's greatest artists
yet he also painted society portraits.
Diego Rivera died of heart failure in
1957 and is remembered as a great
example of the socially committed
artist. His art expressed his outspoken
commitment to left—wing political
causes, depicting such subjects as
Mexican peasantry, American workers
and revolutionary figures. At times,
his outspoken, uncompromising
political views collided with the
wishes of wealthy patrons and aroused
controversy both inside and outside
the art world.
Mural, Escuela Nacional Preparatoria,
Mexico City, Diego Rivera
Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo
The Flower Seller, Diego Rivera, 1941
Flower Festival, Diego Rivera, 1925
Portrait of Mrs Carr, Diego Rivera, 1946Man at the Crossroads, Diego Rivera

3. Eleanor—Jayne Browne | Printmaking Class Notes | Culture And Social Consciousness. Design For Social Justice 3
Online links and visual references—
The Message, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjLHrhLVwzs
The Message Lyrics, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five
Mac Flickr page
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mistermac/
El Mac Website
http://elmac.net/
El Mac Blog
http://mac-arte.blogspot.tw/
EL PASO x JUÁREZ Border murals by EL MAC
https://vimeo.com/123262276
Diego Rivera MOMA Exhibition
http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2011/rivera/
Diego Rivera Detroit Industry Murals Movie
http://www.dia.org/diego/walls.html#
Diego Rivera artworks Flickr
https://www.flickr.com/search/?q=diego%20rivera
The D/sign Lounge Pinterest Folders
https://www.pinterest.com/thedsignlounge/
Culture And Social Consciousness.
Design For Social Justice

4. Eleanor—Jayne Browne | Printmaking Class Notes | Culture And Social Consciousness. Design For Social Justice 4
The Message, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five—
It's like a jungle sometimes
It makes me wonder how I keep from goin' under
Broken glass everywhere
People pissin' on the stairs, you know they just don't care
I can't take the smell, can't take the noise
Got no money to move out, I guess I got no choice
Rats in the front room, roaches in the back
Junkies in the alley with the baseball bat
I tried to get away but I couldn't get far
Cause a man with a tow truck repossessed my car
[Chorus]
Don't push me cause I'm close to the edge
I'm trying not to lose my head
It's like a jungle sometimes
It makes me wonder how I keep from goin' under
Standin' on the front stoop hangin' out the window
Watchin' all the cars go by, roarin' as the breezes blow
Crazy lady, livin' in a bag
Eatin' outta garbage pails, used to be a fag hag
Said she'll dance the tango, skip the light fandango
A Zircon princess seemed to lost her senses
Down at the peep show watchin' all the creeps
So she can tell her stories to the girls back home
She went to the city and got social security
She had to get a pimp, she couldn't make it on her own
[Chorus]
It's like a jungle sometimes
It makes me wonder how I keep from goin' under
My brother's doin' bad, stole my mother's TV
Says she watches too much, it's just not healthy
All My Children in the daytime, Dallas at night
Can't even see the game or the Sugar Ray fight
The bill collectors, they ring my phone
And scare my wife when I'm not home
Got a bum education, double-digit inflation
Can't take the train to the job, there's a strike at the station
Neon King Kong standin' on my back
Can't stop to turn around, broke my sacroiliac
A mid-range migraine, cancered membrane
Sometimes I think I'm goin' insane
I swear I might hijack a plane!
[Chorus]
It's like a jungle sometimes
It makes me wonder how I keep from goin' under
My son said, Daddy, I don't wanna go to school
Cause the teacher's a jerk, he must think I'm a fool
And all the kids smoke reefer, I think it'd be cheaper
If I just got a job, learned to be a street sweeper
Or dance to the beat, shuffle my feet
Wear a shirt and tie and run with the creeps
Cause it's all about money, ain't a damn thing funny
You got to have a con in this land of milk and honey
They pushed that girl in front of the train
Took her to the doctor, sewed her arm on again
Stabbed that man right in his heart
Gave him a transplant for a brand new start
I can't walk through the park cause it's crazy after dark
Keep my hand on my gun cause they got me on the run
I feel like a outlaw, broke my last glass jaw
Hear them say "You want some more?"
Livin' on a see-saw
[Chorus]
It's like a jungle sometimes
It makes me wonder how I keep from goin' under
A child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smilin' on you but he's frownin' too
Because only God knows what you'll go through
You'll grow in the ghetto livin' second-rate
And your eyes will sing a song called deep hate
The places you play and where you stay
Looks like one great big alleyway
You'll admire all the number-book takers
Thugs, pimps and pushers and the big money-makers
Drivin' big cars, spendin' twenties and tens
And you'll wanna grow up to be just like them, huh
Smugglers, scramblers, burglars, gamblers
Pickpocket peddlers, even panhandlers
You say I'm cool, huh, I'm no fool
But then you wind up droppin' outta high school
Now you're unemployed, all non-void
Walkin' round like you're Pretty Boy Floyd
Turned stick-up kid, but look what you done did
Got sent up for a eight-year bid
Now your manhood is took and you're a Maytag
Spend the next two years as a undercover fag
Bein' used and abused to serve like hell
Til one day, you was found hung dead in the cell
It was plain to see that your life was lost
You was cold and your body swung back and forth
But now your eyes sing the sad, sad song
Of how you lived so fast and died so young so
[Chorus]
It's like a jungle sometimes
It makes me wonder how I keep from goin' under
Culture And Social Consciousness.
Design For Social Justice