Existentialist ethics tell us that we as individuals cannot be truly liberated until all are. This means that we must pursue a more just world for all. Interestingly enough, as we look at the evidences of the ways in which cultural violence have been used historically and today as a means to withhold power from the people, we find that participating in the arts grants a great deal of power to the people. Thus, accessibility to participating in artistic acts or the creative process become fundamental to activism for social justice. This work lays out five fundamental aspects of the creative process that help us move towards liberation—confrontation of ideas, vulnerability, choice making, truth or world building, and authentic identity formation. In order to realize the full potential of positive impact the creative process can have in the realm of social justice, however, we must reframe our understanding of artists and the creative process in our society. This is a call to action both to artists and audience to recognize and wield the power of the arts to liberate all within our society. / Doctor of Philosophy / We have all heard the disparaging stereotypes surrounding the arts--the arts aren't a viable career choice, they aren't important, they're just meant for hobbies, or they're for folks who aren't smart enough to do something "useful" with their lives. If you have been a practicing artist for any number of years you have surely been offered payment in "exposure" at least half a dozen times by now. And yet, creating art is perhaps one of the most powerful and political acts we may undertake as humans. With each creative act we make claim to our own identities and have the opportunity to support the unique identities of others. In a world plagued by injustice perhaps artists are just the heroes we need. In this work I outline the connection between the artistic act and liberation. It is a call to action both to artists and audience to recognize the great potential that artists have to shape the world for better or worse. It asks you, the reader, to support social justice by supporting accessibility to confrontational, vulnerable, and deliberate artistic acts both by others and yourself.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/104036 |
| Date | 25 June 2021 |
| Creators | Shepard, Kathryn Ann |
| Contributors | Political Science, Pitt, Joseph C., Thomas, Anne Elise, Shadle, Brett L., Faulkner, Brandy S., Standley, Eric J. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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