Projects tagged "Amplifies (issue or campaign)"

Brings public and political attention to an issue or campaign.  Can include prefigurative action, making the invisible visible.

The Guerrilla Girls: 'We upend the art world's notion of what's good and what's right'
Practitioner:
Guerilla Girls
Date:
Jan 1 1985
In 1984, a group of women in New York gathered outside the Museum of Modern Art as part of a protest. A group show, An International Survey of Recent Painting and Sculpture, was showing 165 artists, 152 male artists exhibited alongside just 13 women. Outraged, they attended the protest, bringing placards and chanting outside the museum. But a handful of women within the larger crowd learned something.
WILD: Act I - Ballet + Criminal Justice Reform
Practitioner:
Jeremy McQueen
Date:
Mar 16 2021
"WILD: Act I" is a film demonstrating the power of creativity in constraint. Using moving choreography performed by Elijah Lancaster and vivid imagery displayed on three walls in a mock cell, Jeremy McQueen gives voice to young Black and Brown men caught in the criminal 'justice' system.
Art, Activism, and the City: Illuminating Social Change
Practitioner:
Donkeys
Date:
Mar 13 2025
The creative fusion of art and activism in urban spaces has propelled the British collective Led by Donkeys into the spotlight, garnering millions of views for their interventions on social media. Their critical visual occupations - whether billboard messages during the day or large-scale projections at night - raise a compelling question: which medium holds the greater persuasive power?
Armed Activists Escort Black Lawmaker in Michigan
Practitioner:
Michael Lynn Jr.
Date:
May 8 2020
A black Michigan lawmaker was escorted to the state Capitol by armed guards Wednesday, after protestors carrying long guns descended on the building last week to rally against the state’s extension of stay-at-home orders meant to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Destruction of the National Front
Practitioner:
Eddie Chambers
Date:
Dec 3 1979
TATE:
LUSH Launches Massive Campaign to End Shark Slaughter on World Oceans Day
Practitioner:
LUSH Fresh Handmade Cosmetics
Date:
Jun 6 2019
Vegan-friendly cosmetics brand LUSH is launching the “Shark Attack” campaign to save sharks from slaughter on World Oceans Day (June 8). Starting today, LUSH will re-launch its popular vegan Shark Fin Soap online (available in-store starting June 8) and donate 100 percent of the $5.95 sales price to The Rob Stewart Sharkwater Foundation, an organization created to continue the work of late ocean conservationist and filmmaker Rob Stewart.
Ladies' Room 洗手间 (2000)
Practitioner:
Cui Xiuwen 崔岫闻
Date:
Jan 1 2000
Ladies’ Room, lasting fewer than six and a half minutes, offers a behind-the-scenes look at a women’s washroom in a nightclub located in a Beijing hotel. A male patron of Cui Xiuwen’s studio first took her there, and she acknowledges being drawn to the ladies’ room precisely because her host did not have access to it.
Turtle Island
Practitioner:
Sierra Club, Sarah Younger
Date:
Apr 22 2022
The inspiration for the creation was the Common Snapping Turtle. A big shout-out to local member, Kristin Rubin and local college students, Sarah Lockhart and Alanis Gonzalez, for their assistance in the construction of the artwork.
Marisela Escobedo and the quest for justice
Practitioner:
Marisela Escobedo
Date:
May 11 2010
Marisela Escobedo was 52 when she was shot dead on a sidewalk outside of the Government Palace of Chihuahua City, northern Mexico. She had set up camp in one of Mexico’s most dangerous cities – a place where people won’t leave their homes at night to protest day and night against corruption and impunity in her daughter’s murder case.
#DontMuteDC and Moechella Protest
Practitioner:
Don't Mute DC and Long Live Go-Go
Date:
Apr 7 2019
In response to white gentrifiers trying to silence go-go music on the corners of Florida Avenue and 7th Avenue, activists and D.C. residents poured into the streets by blasting go-go music and celebrating its rich history within the city. For those unfamiliar, go-go music is at the heart of D.C. culture and features live bands playing covers of, and sometimes original, music with all different types of drums and other percussion instruments.
French Farmers Throw Sh*t Fit
Practitioner:
FNSEA (National Federation of Agricultural Holders' Unions)
Date:
Dec 18 2023
"Energy costs surged with the Feb. 2022 launch by Russia of full-scale war in Ukraine and hit hard for farmers reliant on tractors, harvesters and other fuel-guzzling equipment. Prices also soared for other inputs that underpin intensive farming, notably fertilizers. French farmers were already struggling to compete in the increasingly globalized economy.
Global Jars of Joy
Practitioner:
The Joy Switchboard
Date:
Apr 25 2021
Our project aims to show people that joy can be an act of resistance and resilience in the face of global justice issues when harnessed in the right way. The sharing of joy can also act as a connector in a society that continues to grow more polarised through the division of social media and mainstream media.
Becoming a Statue of Japanese Comfort Woman
Practitioner:
Yoshiko Shimada (嶋田美子)
Date:
Nov 30 2011
‘Since Plotinus’, writes Joseph Tanke (2019, p. 486), ‘Western art has been consecrated to beauty, and beautiful art has been understood as the achievement of good form’. But alongside this interest in beauty and form, art has been committed to politics and perspectives, equity and rights. Consequently, and particularly since the start of the modern era, artists frequently initiate or participate in ‘difficult conversations’.
Kodaikanal Won't video: All you need to know about the Unilever mercury dumping case
Practitioner:
Chennai artist Sofia Ashraf
Date:
Jul 30 2015
The Kodaikanal Won't video by Chennai artist Sofia Ashraf, asking Unilver to 'clean up their mess' in connection with the Kodaikanal mercury dumping, has gone viral with over 783,533 views at the time of writing this, in just over two days. It has been shared on social media by prominent personalities such as Nandita Das, Varun Grover, Vishal Dadlani and was even praised by Nicki Minaj, on whose song Anaconda, the rap is based on.
She Draws the Urgency of Climate Change: Introducing Zaria Forman
Practitioner:
Zaria Forman
Date:
Mar 8 2021
On this International Women’s Day, we wanted to celebrate the commitment of a very special human being. Her name is Zaria Forman, a leading artist in contemporary art with a cause. She is not only an exceptional human being; she is also an incredible American drawer who uses art to convey the emergency of climate change.
Ghana Thinktank. Developing the first world.
Practitioner:
Christopher Robbins, John Ewing, Matey Odonkor, Maria Del Carmen Montoya
Date:
Feb 1 2006
Ghana ThinkTank is an international collective that “develops the first world” by flipping traditional power dynamics, asking the “third world” to intervene into the lives of the people living in the so-called “developed” world.
Five Times Climate Change and The Environment Inspired Fashion Design
Practitioner:
Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, Christopher Raeburn, Balenciaga, Stella McCartney
Date:
Sep 7 2022
The upcoming year of fashion shows look set to be charged with climate change and environmental themes. This year, more than ever before, we have seen that the business of fashion, at the highest levels, is responding to the push to take the very pressing issue of climate change and environmental damage seriously.
Trayvon Martin's Flight Suit Will Be Displayed At This New Smithsonian Exhibit
Practitioner:
The Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture
Date:
Mar 1 2023
A new exhibition titled “Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures” will debut at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) to examine Afrofuturist expression and culture as it relates to music, activism, art, and more.
Trump Braille Art
Practitioner:
Clarke Reynolds
Date:
Jan 20 2025
A blind artist has unveiled an image of Donald Trump in Braille dots, which spell out his conversation with Secret Service agents following the assassination attempt in July 2024. Seconds after the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, agents tried to move Trump to safety, but he demanded to retrieve his shoes and then paused to make a fist pump gesture.
Families Of The Uvalde Shooting Victims Are Camping Outside The School District's Office Demanding Action
Practitioner:
Uvalde Families
Date:
Sep 30 2022
Brett Cross has been camping outside the school district administrative office in Uvalde, Texas, for 78 hours.
Joseph Beuys, Coyote: I like America and America Likes Me, May 1974
Practitioner:
Joseph Beuys
Date:
Mar 1 1974
It was 1974 when Beuys arrived in New York City, ready to tackle a whole new challenge and create what was to become one of the most famous works of art of the time. Upon arrival, his assistants wrapped him in a large piece of felt and transported him, by ambulance, to the René Block Gallery in SoHo. There, awaiting the artist, was a live coyote. Beuys spent three consecutive days, eight hours at a time, locked up with the wild animal.
Occupy Our Homes Forecloses on Wells Fargo
Practitioner:
Occupy Our Homes
Date:
Apr 29 2014
On the eve of Wells Fargo’s annual shareholders meeting in San Antonio, TX on Tuesday, home defenders, students, community groups, and activists in ten cities took peaceful action against the bank. Petitions signed by thousands of people were delivered to Wells Fargo branches and offices across the country calling on CEO John Stumpf to change the bank’s predatory practices.
"Anime Gaze"
Practitioner:
Date:
Jun 20 2023
A unique piece captured significant attention at the Central Academy of Fine Arts undergraduate graduation exhibition in June. The work featured an "anime-style" girl's skull linked to a human skeleton and internal organs, all encased within a thin film. As visitors entered the exhibit area, her breathing and gaze would alter accordingly.
Beautiful Women's Rights Walk
Practitioner:
Meili Xiao
Date:
Sep 15 2012
In 2012, the 24-year-old feminist activist Xiao Meili launched the "Beautiful Women's Rights Walk" anti-sexual assault activity. She set off from Beijing in mid-September and passed through Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Changsha and other cities along the way to reach the destination Guangzhou. She took 114 days and reaches more than 2500 kilometers in this tour.
A Piano-Playing Ukraine Protester Serenades Riot Police
Practitioner:
Ukrainian Protestor
Date:
Dec 9 2013
By: Patrick Randall KIEV — Several thousand pro-European Ukrainians demonstrated in the capital for President Viktor Yanukovych's resignation over the weekend. One man even played the piano in front of Ukranian riot police on Kiev’s Independence Square.

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