Super-diversity, creativity and political expression
Artivism : creativity as a new form of political expression European Research Council Consolidator Grant – ACTIVISM Prof. Monika Salzbrunn Faculty of Theology and Sciences of Religions – University of Lausanne – UNIL www.unil.ch/euresearch
Artistic expression represents an original way to show political criticism and demand for civil rights. But how do citizens use art in activism or activism in art to create multiple forms of resistance?
This project explores new artistic forms of political expression in multicultural cities, in times of crisis and/or in oppressive conditions. Prof. Salzbrunn and her team focus on a broad range of artistic tools, styles, and means of expression such as festive events and parades, caricatures and comics, and street art.
The methodology is based on multisensory ethnographic research including film-making and drawing in three principal urban settings on three continents.
- Europe: Italian and French towns with a strong tradition in Carnival parades and carnivalesque style figures (masquerade, détournement) in political demonstrations.
- Africa: gateway cities in Cameroon with creative and satirical comic art.
- North-America: Latino immigrant cities in California (US) with powerful mural paintings.
Building on urban studies, migration studies, and the anthropology of art, Prof. Salzbrunn and her team aim to understand how social actors engage artistically in order to trigger social, economic and political change.