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The term “Arrest” is the act of depriving people of their liberty, usually in relation to an investigation or prevention of a crime, and thus detaining the arrested person in a procedure as part of the criminal justice system. After arrest, a person’s liberty is in control of the arrester. In criminal law, arrest plays a vital role in bringing an accused before the court and to prevent him from absconding. The purpose of an arrest is to bring the arrestee before a court or otherwise to secure the administration of the law. An arrest also serves the function of notifying the community that an individual has been accused of a crime and also may admonish and deter the arrested individual from committing other crimes. Arrests can be made in both criminal and civil cases, although in civil matters, arrest is a drastic measure which is not looked upon with favour by the courts.
Get original essayIn Indian law, Criminal Procedural Code 1973 (hereinafter referred to as Cr.P.C), chapter V (Section 41 to 60) talks about Arrest of a person but it do not define arrest anywhere. Arrest can be made by police officer, Magistrate or any private person, like you or me can also arrest a person but that can made only in accordance with the legal provisions mentioned in CrPC. CrPC exempts the members of Armed forces from being arrested for anything done by them in discharge of their official duties except after obtaining the consent of the government (section 45 CrPC)
According to section 43 of CrPC, Any private individual may arrest a person without warrant only when the person is a proclaimed offender under section 82 CrPC and the person commits a non-bailable offence and cognizable offences in his presence; with warrant u/s 72 and 73, under order of a Police officer u/s 37 and under order of a magistrate u/s 37 and 44 Cr. P.C. and also 60 (1) CrPC.
According to section 44 of CrPC, Any Magistrate, whether Executive or Judicial, may arrest a person when any offence is committed in his presence then he may himself arrest or order any person to arrest the offender and thereafter, subject to the provisions herein contained as to bail, may commit the offender to custody.
A military officer may arrest under section 130 and 131 CrPC.
A police officer may arrest without a warrant under Sections 41 (1) to 151 CrPC; under a warrant under Sections 72 to 74 CrPC; under the written order of an officer in charge under Sections 55 and 157; under the orders of magistrate under Section 44 and in non cognizable offence under Section 42 CrPC. A superior officer may arrest under Section 36 CrPC. An Officer-in-Charge of a Police Station may arrest under Section 42 (2) and 157 CrPC.
Under Sections 41, 42, 151 CrPC, a Police officer may arrest without warrant in the following conditions:
As held in the case of Swami Hariharanand Saraswati vs Jailer I/C Dist. Varanasi, 1954, the arrested person must be produced before another magistrate within 24 hours, otherwise his detention will be illegal.
In the case of Joginder Kumar vs State of UP, 1994, it was held that no arrest can be made merely because it is lawful to do so. There must be a justifiable reason to arrest.
Further, in State vs Bhera, 1997, it was held that the “reasonable suspicion” and “creditable information” must relate to definite averments which must be considered by the Police Officer himself before he arrests the person.
Section 46 CrPC describes the way in which an arrest is actually made. As per Section 46(1), unless the person being arrested consents to the submission to custody by words or actions, the arrester shall actually touch or confine the body of the person to be arrested. Since arrest is a restraint on the liberty of the person, it is necessary for the person being arrested to either submit to custody or the arrester must touch and confine his body. Mere oral declaration of arrest by the arrester without getting submission to custody or physical touching to confine the body will not amount to arrest. The submission to custody may be by express words or by action.
It was held in the case of Bharosa Ramdayal vs Emperor, 1941, if a person makes a statement to the police accusing himself of committing an offence, he would be considered to have submitted to the custody of the police officer. Similarly, if the accused proceeds towards the police station as directed by the police officer, he has submitted to the custody. In such cases, physical contact is not required.
In case of Birendra Kumar Rai vs Union of India, 1992, it was held that arrest need not be by handcuffing the person, and it can also be complete by spoken words if the person submits to custody.
Section 46(2) provides that if any person forcibly resists the endeavor to arrest him, or attempts to evade the arrest, such police officer or other person may use all means necessary to effect the arrest. Thus, if the person tries to runaway, the police officer can take actions to prevent his escape and in doing so, he can use physical force to immobilize the accused. However, as per Section 46(3),
there is no right to cause the death of the person who is not accused of an offence punishable with death or with imprisonment for life, while arresting that person. Further, as per Section 49, an arrested person must not be subjected to more restraint than is necessary to prevent him from escaping.
Due to concerns of violation of the rights of women, a new provision was inserted in Section 46(4) that forbids the arrest of women after sunset and before sunrise, except in exceptional circumstances, in which case the arrest can be done by a woman police officer after making a written report and obtaining a prior permission from the concerned Judicial Magistrate of First class.
In Kultej Singh vs Circle Inspector of Police, 1992, it was held that keeping a person in the police station or confining the movement of the person in the precincts of the police station amounts to arrest of the person[9].
Section 41A deals with cases not covered under Section 41 (1), wherein a police officer is directed to issue a notice and not to make an arrest unless the noticee after receiving notice does not comply with the terms of notice or complies once and then flouts it subsequently. If the notice complies with terms of notice, he may only be arrested for the offence concerned for reasons to be recorded in writing by the police officer.
Section 41B directs the conducts of Police officers while making and arrest. It directs them to ensure that while making an arrest they bear an accurate, clear & visible identification of his name for the purposes of easy identification, prepare an arrest memo attested by either a family member of arrestee or a respectable member of society and countersigned by the arrestee himself. The arrestee is also to be informed of his right to have a relative or a friend of his informed of his arrest, if arrest memo is not attested by his family member[10].
CrPC gives wide powers to the police for arresting a person. Such powers without appropriate safeguards for the arrested person will be harmful for the society. To ensure that this power is not used arbitrarily, several restraints have been put on it, which, indirectly, can be seen as recognition of the rights of a person being arrested. Further, once arrested, a person is already at a disadvantage because of his lack of freedom and so he cannot take appropriate steps to defend himself. Thus, to meet the needs of “fair trial”, several provisions are given in CrPC, that give specific rights to an arrested person. These rights can be described as follows:
The General rule is that females are not be arrested without the presence of a lady constable and no female be arrested after sun-set but there are exceptions in some cases, where crime is very serious and arrest is important then the arrest can be made with special orders and it depends on facts and circumstances of each case. Separate lock ups to be provided for them. State of Maharashtra Vs Christian Community Welfare Council of India [(2003) 8 SCC 546]
In general, non-compliance does not void a trial. Just because any provision relating to arrest was not complied with does not affect the liability of accused. However, the violation will be material in case the accused is prosecuted on the charge of resistance to or escape from lawful custody.
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Get custom essayFurther, everybody has a right to defend himself against unlawful arrest and a person can exercise this right under Section 96 to 106 of IPC and he will not be liable for any injury caused due to it. Also, a person who is making an illegal arrest is guilty of wrongful confinement and also exposes himself to damages in a civil suit. If a person who has an authority to arrest, arrests a person with full knowledge that the arrest is illegal, he will be liable to be prosecuted under Section 220 of IPC. Similarly, any private person who does not have an authority to arrest, arrests a person with full knowledge that the arrest is illegal, can be prosecuted under Section 342 of IPC for wrongful confinement. A person making illegal arrest also exposes himself to civil suit for damages for false imprisonment. Also, informal detention or restraint of any kind by the police is not authorized by law.
Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring both used distinctive language and techniques for visual effect to communicate ideas while developing connections between art and society in their practices, as they create and show how society is through their many different artworks. Haring and Basquiat would do this by creating art in very public areas like subways and main roads throughout New York, Sydney Australia, and France to have a bigger impact and audience on their artworks and show society how they act through their public artworks.
Get original essayKeith Haring was an American graffiti and pop artist known for creating his art in the New York subway, turning the new york subway into his first stage of creating art, making it his own personal canvas. He fell in love with drawing and creating things at a very young age, he was very influenced by the cartoon art created by walt disney, later creating a basis for some of the art he would make in his future works. After graduating high school Keith attended a school of professional art in Pittsburgh where he then began to study commercial art. Keith would then drop out after only 2 semesters after deciding to take his career in a different direction moving to New York City in 1978 where he would study painting and begin his infamous career by creating art through subways and murals all around the world.
Keith Haring started his work along the subways throughout New York while expressing social activism creating the grounds and basis for most of his artworks. Haring would use the black empty advertising panels along subway walls to create his own artwork, he would use white chalk to fill the panels. Some of his iconic drawings created during this time were dancing figures and a radiant baby that would reflect rays of white chalk around it. Haring would develop the connection between art and society in his practise with artworks such as ‘A Pile of Crowns for Jean-Michel Basquiat’, created in 1988, this artwork was made by haring to pay tribute to another artist, Jean Michel Basquiat after he passed away earlier in that year. The artwork can be seen as a testament showing how both haring and basquiat used the repetition of symbols to convey meaning. Basquiat was highly acknowledged within society, and for Keith Haring to relate his art to him suggests that he had respected and agreed with his views including the views between art and society that they had both shared in their practise
Haring would also develop his connections between art and society in his practice, transmitting political ideas through symbols with artworks like ‘Haring’s Prophets of Rage’ that was created in 1988, it demonstrates Harings mastery of communicating his political ideas in his artworks as he expresses anger to the aids crisis in this artwork from isolating the body parts. This artwork also depicts the racism, as during this time in South Africa the Apartheid existed and was a system of racial segregation, it can be shown as the death of the white suppressor is in the artwork and the broken chains of the black man, this just shows how haring would deeply convey and express his political ideas and stance throughout his art and how he would develop connection between art and society in his practice. “I am intrigued with the shapes people choose as their symbols to create a language.” In this quote from Haring the use of language could mean anything from symbolism to conveying society in art, as he is intrigued with the way people use symbols to share their message in artworks.
Jean-Michel Basquiat was one of America's most charismatic painters, Basquiat spent his childhood creating art, he never went to art school but drew his own art inspired by random objects and even places around him. He would read books on anatomy when he was young creating a major influence and basis for his artworks to come in the future. Basquiate would use cut up techniques to form some of his materials as well as, oil sticks, crayons, spray paint and pencils with even the use of harsh black outlining. Despite basquiat's mainstream audience he insisted on depicting challenging themes of identity and oppression.
Basquiat would develop his connections between art and society in his practise, with famous created art such as ‘Irony of a Negro Policeman’ created in 1981. This artwork depicts how it was quite ironic that a black man could be a police officer while the laws were put on the black man in the first place. Basquiat would use artworks like this to convey his message better he also uses this artwork to symbolise a cage on the policeman's hat showing how black people have been confined in society with also the displaced body parts on the policeman showing how black people have been displaced in society, this is a major example of how Basquiet connects art and society throughout his practise and how his art can really impact and make a say on society and their actions “I don’t think about art when i’m working. I try to think about life.” Basquiat says this as he is truly thinking about life when creating art and how life can be one of main connections throughout his artworks, life in this sense could easily relate to society, as the message he is showing us in his artwork highly relates to society.
Baquiat had never finished high school but developed an appreciation to art at a young age, he quickly rose to fame in the early 1980s and unfortunately his drug addiction had lead to his tragic death which was from a heroin overdose in 1988 in new york, but during basquiates time alive another artwork he had used to convey connection between art and society in his practise was with an amazing piece called ‘Obnoxious Liberals’ created in 1982 he had spray painted crowns and scribbled words that would reference everything from his porterican heritage to political issues, In the middle is a man labelled with obnoxious liberals and a for sale sign which represents basquiat and his works, this artwork is also seen to only have three colors, blue, red, and white, which may well represent the American flag, and the American flag represents bravery, justice, and vigilance, something that was not seen during basquiat's years with the oppression he would face in his everyday life.
Both Keith Haring and Jean Michel Basquiat had strengthened and developed their connections between art and society in their practice, Basquiat did it through relating his art to political and social issues, relating to African Americans and their confinement within society. Haring did it through being a social activist towards sex related and social issues, such as drugs and AIDS.
In Emily St John Mandel’s 2014 science fiction, dystopian novel Station Eleven, a majority of the world is deceased due to the Georgia-flu pandemic spread unknowingly by a passenger on a flight from Russia to The United States causing an apocalyptic world. All technology and modern inventions during have collapsed but, the Arts remain as an important part of society even after the fall of civilization. While the preserved, broken technologies remain only in abandoned houses and the Severn airport museum of civilization unable to be used, the arts were one of only a few pre-pandemic aspects actively preserved in the aftermath of the Georgia flu. In this novel the arts function as a measure of how stable society is. When the arts begin to diminish, society begins to fall and when the arts slowly begin to strengthen again, as does society.
Get original essayThis idea stated above is further supported in a research paper published by Princeton University entitled “How the Arts Impact Communities: An introduction to the literature on arts impact studies” written by Joshua Guetzkow, it is argued that the arts have a positive impact on the development of communities and society. This article acts as a lens to understand why members of the travelling symphony were able to collect themselves in the aftermath of the apocalypse and live thriving, productive lives. To explain why the arts help communities and society, Guetzkow uses three main pillars that can be found throughout Station Eleven. The first pillar in Guetzkow’s article argues that a direct involvement in the arts fosters the health of those involved in the arts by “Build[ing] interpersonal ties and […] increase[ing] opportunities for self-expression and enjoyment” (Guetzkow 3). The second pillar of Guetzkow’s article argues that a direct involvement in the arts allows for positive cognitive and psychological impacts through an “Increase[d] sense of individual efficacy and self-esteem [and an] Improve[d] […] sense of belonging or attachment to a community.” The third and final pillar in the article argues that amongst the aforementioned benefit’s, direct involvement in the arts improves one’s interpersonal skills by giving an “Enhanced ability to work with others and communicate ideas.” Each of these skills acquired from the incorporation of the arts in a person’s life are a key part to explaining why the amount and quality of the arts found in a society is a measure of societies competence. Simply put, the more art in society the more interpersonal ties, self-expression, sense of belonging, and communication there will be. Each of these things, provided by the arts, create a competent society especially in Station Eleven.
Initially in the first chapter of Mandels novel, the arts, specifically a rendition of Shakespeare’s play king Lear, are spoken of as an important aspect to the plot of the novel. Before the other character and the audience of the play realize Arthur is having a heart attack “there was a change in his face, he stumbled, he reached for a column but misjudged the distance and struck it hard with the side of his hand.” From one perspective this could be judged as Arthur ruining the play and in turn the arts being diminished as a whole. Following Arthurs death, and a decline in the arts because of his death and the ruined play, a mass death began. This is the first case of the amount and quality of art corresponding to the condition of society. This situation also relates to the first pillar of Guetzkow’s paper because when Arthur died the play ended and the other actors lost their way of self-expression then society went into a downward spiral into the apocalypse.
Chronologically, the next example happens towards the end of the novel but it is in a flashback that takes place at the beginning of the apocalypse. While sitting in the Severn-City airport the first winter after the epidemic, everything began to stop working. by the third day in the airport “all the vending machines in the airport were empty of snacks, and the battery on Tyler’s Nintendo console was dead.” Although video games are an unconventional form of art, time magazine argues that video games should be considered art because “They include many forms of traditional artistic expression—sculpture in the form of 3D modeling, illustration, narrative arcs, and dynamic music—that combine to create something that transcends any one type.” With the idea that video games are art in mind, Tyler’s Nintendo console dying is considered another type of are crashing as society crashes after the epidemic. When he found out his gaming console had died and wouldn’t be functional again “Tyler wept, inconsolable” as if he knew that society was worsening as the arts, his video game console, fell. Tyler’s loss of his video game console relates to the second pillar of Guetzkow’s paper because the loss of his video makes Tyler feel like he is losing his sense of belonging to his former life.
Another important case of the arts relating to how society is functioning happens when the novel fast forwards twenty years to the post plague world were once again people are beginning to live together in small groups or towns. The travelling Shakespearean company stops in a town named St. Deborah by the water to put on a performance. After their performance, once the traveling symphony left St. Deborah’s by the water they found a stow away twelve-year-old girl by the name of Eleanor. According to Eleanor she “was going to be [the prophets] next wife” (123) because “he had a dream where god told him he was to repopulate the earth” (123). Everyone in the symphony was disgusted by the prophet and kept asking “why would he marry a twelve-year-old” (123) By stowing away in the travelling symphonies caravan to get out of St. Deborah by the water, Eleanor escaped a life of being betrothed to someone she didn’t love. Therefore, the rekindling of the arts through the travelling symphony gave Eleanor her freedom and bettered society by setting the precedence that it is wrong for a twelve-year-old to marry a grown man.
Finally, at the end of the travelling symphony stays in the Severn City Airport for five weeks. During this time, life for the traveling symphony slowly begins to return back to the way it was pre-pandemic as members of the symphony began incorporating music into their daily activities as they had done before the Georgia flu changed their lives. One afternoon while still in the Airport “Garrett hummed a Brandenburg concerto while he worked in the gardens.” First, this quote is important because it shows the people in the symphony doing relaxing everyday chores that they couldn’t do post plague due to the condition of the world. Secondly, this quote shows the reemergence of music during these everyday chores meaning the world is beginning to heal. After garret was singing, Dolores was found “whisper[ing] fragments of Shakespeare to herself while she swept the concourse floor” (331) prior to living in the airport, while the symphony was moving around and camping in different places each night, they would never have swept. It is the “fragments of Shakespeare” Dolores was whispering that pulled her through the apocalypse into this time where she could be whispering them while sweeping like in her time before the flu hit. All of the people from the symphony coming together and doing different household chores while they were living in the airport is a blatant example of the third pillar of Guetzkow’s paper; as the arts were reintroduced into everyday activities the symphony began to work together more efficiently to take care of one another.
Overall, it is the amount of music, plays, paintings, and all other forms of art in Station Eleven that measures how competent society is. In the beginning of the Georgia flu outbreak art began to fall as society did. However, when the symphony began travelling and spreading the arts, society began to revive itself by reverting back to its old ways while also adopting new customs.
Art is not a necessary part of survival. So why does it matter? This short essay about art tries to answer the question of its importance. Oftentimes art is overlooked and viewed as an unimportant skill or ability to have. However, art has many qualities that one can benefit from. It is a stress reliever that allows people to express thoughts and feelings they may not be able to convey with words. This makes art very important as it is a universal language that can be recognized, understood and appreciated by anyone and everyone. Art can be expressed through film, music or writing. It gives people a platform to express thoughts and opinions on a plethora of issues and subjects such as politics. Any form of art can lead to major changes in the world.
Get original essayEveline, a story in James Joyce’s Dubliners tells about a woman who takes care of her father and finds comfort in the familiar. Over the years Eveline grew used to her life in Ireland. Since there is no one in her house to protect her, she takes her mother's role as the victim. She fears her father will physically abuse her like he did to her mother. Domestic violence was not out of place during this time and was ignored by the public. This can be used to form a link between the citizens of Ireland and how the threat of violence England pushed with soldiers was ignored.
The movie BlacKkKlansman delves deeply into politics and race issues. Through the art of film, allegories and knowing when to be comedic or serious are two very powerful things this movie nails on the head. The character David Duke represents Donald Trump and how even though he is a KKK member, he talks with a gracefulness and calmness that might make people want to join the klan. Spike Lee clearly makes parallels with how both of these figures managed to rise to power and gain widespread support despite saying things that many people would consider atrocious. In a society filled with so much hatred and so many divisions. Democrats versus Republicans, liberals versus conservatives, and black lives matter versus the KKK. The real solution and the real harbinger of peace will always be the man in the middle. The man who stays away from extremes and tries to find relatively peaceful solutions. Someone who works with the system to take down the unjust aspects of the system rather than try to tear it all down.
Joyner Lucas knows how to make a song directly political with words that still stick to a flow and make sense. In his song I'm Not Racist he records his song and plays it over a video of two men arguing using the lyrics of his song. One man is white and round and is wearing a MAGA hat and the other is a young black man with braids. The two go back and forth for each of their halves of the song. At the halfway point of the song the camera angle positions a pillar splitting the two apart. And at the end of the song both men hug it out and put their differences aside after they've seen each other's point of view.
As seen from the essay, Aat affects the lives of many people and has given them a voice and somewhere to go when they need to break from their busy day to day life. Although art is not a necessity when it comes to survival, it plays an important role in our culture and our everyday lives. Whether one considers themselves an artist or not, art surrounds us and is an essential part of living and not just surviving. Poets and artists might not be the savior of human society, but without them, there's nothing to save.
Art has a long history of giving rise to vocal outrage, but should there be restrictions on how far to push the boundaries? Art is no stranger to the gasp-inducing; in fact, it often strives on it. It’s not unusual to encounter art that can upset or even infuriate viewers, but a string of recent art-world controversies has questioned the need for more curatorial caution. Current events have marked the increasing tension between freedom of expression and tolerance and sensitivity.
Get original essayThe question of whether or not controversial artwork should be removed from view or even destroyed has created a divide in the art world. A New York Times article by Roberta Smith, “Should Art That Infuriates Be Removed? ” discusses this divide.
The heart of this controversy began at the Whitney Biennial. Smith argues that art censorship gained momentum when a white artist’s painting was displayed at the Whitney Biennial. The artist, Dana Schutz, painted a piece titled “Open Casket” based on a graphic photograph of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old African American who was brutally murdered by two white men in 1955. Emmett’s death was one of the major events that sparked the beginning of the civil rights movement. It has continued to be an open wound in our society. Schutz’ painting has drawn protests by many black artists stating that the Till photographs are a “black subject matter,” off-limits to a white artist. Many artists viewed Schutz’ painting as exploiting the suffering of the black community for “profit and fun. ”Smith explores the particular artists who are opposed to Schutz’ painting. Hannah Black, a black artist and writer from the United Kingdom, urged to Whitney Biennial curators that the painting must not only be removed from the gallery, but also destroyed. Smith quotes Black who stated, “White free speech and white creative freedom have been founded on the constraint of others, and are not natural rights.
The painting must go. ”Throughout history, artists have depicted black bodies as a subject matter. However, many black artists have fought to protect this subject matter, especially from non-black artists. In her article, Smith also discusses the opposition to art censorship. On the other side of the debate, Kara Walker, a black artist, stood up for Schutz’s painting. Smith quotes Walker who wrote, “The history of painting is full of graphic violence and narratives that don’t necessarily belong to the artists own life. ” She states that artwork can be a powerful statement, regardless of how or who it offends, viewers must give “rise to deeper inquiries and better art. It can only do this when it is seen. ”
A New York Times opinion piece titled, “Decolonizing the Art Museum: The Next Wave” by Olga Viso discusses how art museums are taking action in response to viewers who seek justice for art centered around race and gender. In the article, Viso poses the question: “How do museums re-conceive their missions at a time of great societal reckoning around race and gender, and as more diverse audiences demand a voice and a sense of accountability? ”Art museums have the responsibility of not only displaying artwork by artists of all races and genders, but also taking into account how the artwork affects the viewer. As director of the Walker Art center, Viso states that she was faced with this challenge after the controversy over “Scaffold,” a public sculpture by Sam Durant.
The piece depicted gallows, a structure used for the hanging of criminals. Viso expresses that the gallows were meant to represent the seven state sanctioned executions between 1859 and 2006. She states that the purpose of this piece was to “critique the persistence of the death penalty in the hierarchies. ”As director of the Walker Art center, Viso states that she was faced with this challenge after the controversy over “Scaffold,” a public sculpture by Sam Durant. The piece depicted gallows, a structure used for the hanging of criminals. Viso expresses that the gallows were meant to represent the seven state sanctioned executions between 1859 and 2006. She states that the purpose of this piece was to “critique the persistence of the death penalty in the hierarchies. ”Viso mentions that she had hoped “Scaffold” would be an opportunity of education and awareness. However, after the unveiling of the sculpture and reaction from the public, she realized that it only ignored America’s colonial past and provoked historical trauma. Viso reflects on her mistakes and states that this experience was humbling. She argues that it is important for museums to engage in dialogue with their audiences. To remain a relevant platform, it is crucial for museums to proceed with empathy and humility. Despite efforts to make a meaningful change in the art world, significant gaps remain between growing minorities and art museums. Systematic change takes time, vision, and leadership. Art can not only be an expression of the faults in our society, but also present ways for us to grow. Despite this, artists should not be the only individuals who highlight the faults and provide opportunities to grow in our society. Viso argues that for museums to remain significant sources of history, they should not ignore the voice of activists. Museums are centers of education, not authority.
Themes of race and violence has always been a prevalent concept in artwork throughout history. By remaking tragic or upsetting moments of history as art, artists have given them a sense of historical significance and a physicality.
In regards to this divide in the art world, I’m on the messy middle ground, constantly shifting with the discovery of various opinion pieces, articles, and news reports. Further exploration of this topic is necessary because the discussion that surrounds censorship of art is upsetting, but most of important of all — it’s beneficial. “Open Casket”, “Scaffold” and the debates that surround them are not a new concept to the art world, but they will certainly change it. Art whether we know it or not, is all around us. Researching this topic will help me grow as an artist, and deeper my knowledge and perspective of my fellow artists. I hope to learn more about both stances on this debate and come to a solid conclusion.
In this essay about art criticism, it is highlighted that the interpretation of art, especially the black narrative, is crucial and should be placed with deep consideration as it plays a significant role in the reality perceived by non-black individuals. The unfamiliarity of white critics and artists with the intellectual, conceptual, and artistic ideas that underlie the work of artists of color creates a space for dismissiveness, leading to a depreciation of art. The portrayal of black figures should be delicate and given a proper placement to avoid the breeding of a stereotypical narrative that is harmful to the worldwide platforms of art and art criticism.
Get original essay“The artist is the creator of beautiful things. The critic is he who can translate into another manner or a new material his impression of beautiful things. Thought and language are to the artist instruments of an art. It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors. Diversity of opinion about a work of art shows that the work is new, complex, and vital. When critics disagree the artist is in accord with himself. “
-OSCAR WILDE (preface)
An excerpt from “The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde, published in 1890 is still extremely relevant today. Interpretation is key when it comes to criticism, especially to the black narrative. Connotations are attached to the impressions critics receive based on their comprehension of the artists, or the dynamics of their lives. “The critic is he who can translate into another manner or a new material his impression of beautiful things.” The translation of a work of art has a diverse visual language that varies between cultures, it is essential to art creation and art criticism that is based on perception. “It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors.” The thought and language that comes from a work of art comes from the perception of that spectator, and the human experience on an individual level is on a diverse spectrum. It comes from experience and apprehension. In aestheticism, art philosophies on the notions of thought, emotion, and beauty. So the placement of the black narrative from the black experience and its interpretation in thought and emotion from art is important to the spaces they are a part of. Chuck Styles, an African American artist stated: “?As artists, it is our job to document the times and display it how we choose. 100 or more years from now our art forms will give future generations insight on how we creatively captured our era, good or bad. And It may not always be pretty.? We as folks have a gift ingrained in our DNA to be able take our trauma and make poetry and beautiful things with it.” The creative impact of black art and artists defines the black community. That definition needs a proper placement, it should not be placed frivolously or carelessly, as the widespread interpretations of black culture could breed a stereotypical narrative that is harmful, worldwide, and within the platforms of art and art criticism. Art changes, but history does not. That history is documented and reiterated through the hands that pass it down the most, the voices that are most heard.
From one of the extrinsically underrepresented communities, art is one of the most important forms of self-expression for the black community. Through a community that is majorly overlooked and misunderstood. Art that uses black figures created from outside of black culture could be placed into a deeper consideration, although it remains dependent on the depiction of the individuals in the work of art. This does not mean that black figures should be exclusively portrayed by black culture, it just means that black art and the portrayal of black figures is delicate. It plays a component in the reality perceived by non-black individuals. This portrayal should have deep consideration as to how they are portrayed. It acts as a way for black voices to be heard, seen, and interpreted. The majority of the black narrative that is taught has been dictated by white figures for hundreds of years. The white narrative has overwritten black history, while the black narrative, written from many perspectives, does not have enough credit to the perspectives of black culture. Many times this white narrative has been used to exploit and profit off of black culture. Similar to the controversial American author William Styron’s ‘Confessions of Nat Turner’, who wrote a slave narrative from the point of view of Nat Turner, a slave who was facing execution. When white culture takes on black culture, they take on a white savior narrative or portray themselves as oppressed while at the same time are the most oppressive towards black individuals. So how can white critics or artists and intellectuals place their judgment on the artwork made by black artists when they have never experienced the black narrative firsthand?? Elizabeth Méndez Berry and Chi-hui Yang ?touch on this in their essay, “The Dominance of the White Male Critic”. Where critics described the film “?Green Book”, and claimed that it was not radical enough. Simone Leigh, an artist, suggested that critics could not identify the radicalism in her work because they are unfamiliar with the art, the artists, and themes she found inspiration from. Art critic Aruna D’Souza stated, “The problem is not that these critics lack some essential connection with the work of artists of color, it’s that many of them simply are not familiar with the intellectual, conceptual, and artistic ideas that underlie the work.”
Unfamiliarity creates a space for dismissiveness, as people dismiss what they do not understand. Although they are not entirely to blame, people learn and understand by the human experience. An artist or critic cannot fully grasp what they have never experienced. The dynamic of those experiences can only be understood through emotion. Those who are outside of that emotion, do not fully understand how their lack of that emotion has its impact. It shows in the language they choose to use in topics that trigger a level of pain that they have simply never felt. White artists cannot depict black pain.
Many will describe an emotion or black pain as over sensitivity, but we cannot deny that emotion is one of the strongest factors that is the force that drives the experience of art and how art is deciphered. When a critic imposes their opinions on thoughts without sentiment, there is an opportunity for depreciation, because there is no emotion attached. As well as the interpretation of blackness through white artists. Artists like Dana Shultz and Victor Arnautoff have raised controversy from their artwork and the spaces they have been presented in. These artworks may have not had the intent to harm, but the representation of black people in all aspects of creativity is vital to black culture, a community that has for a long time been represented by their setbacks. They are often expressed in positions of pain, enslavement, and many other forms of discrimination. Robertha Smith's interpreted the slaves in Victor Arnautoff’s murals as “pure” because of the symbolism in their “white” clothes. In a way it is almost as if she implied that the presence of whiteness removes the issue of the situation. Will the same message remain in Arnautoff’s murals if the slaves were not dressed in white, or if George Washington was removed? As well as the Native American perceived to be in “peaceful” sleep, when he is clearly facedown, on the dirt, in a position that is universally uncomfortable.
There could be more representation of black figures and people of color who display their strength, their strength in their history, and talents. The significance of Dewey Crumpler's response murals in the same space as Victor Arautoff has this significance. If the black figure will exist in a space that dehumanizes them, there should at least be another form that displays their strength and community that also symbolizes their historic struggles. Artworks like this were especially significant in the Harlem Renaissance, where black figures are seen in portraits, in dance, who exist with one another in their community. Black artists in the Harlem Renaissance embraced literary, musical, theatrical, and ?visual arts?.
They redefined “ Negro” the term that set the standard by white culture of African Americans to their heritage and to each other. They also sought to break free of the racist beliefs from the Victorian ?moral values and bourgeois who imposed the degradation of African American lives. The Harlem Renaissance movement had a significant impact on black literature and ?consciousness? worldwide. It consisted of noteworthy intellect and talent and remarkably served as a symbolic cultural enlightenment. Although it goes unnoticed, in conversations with fellow students about the Harlem Renaissance they ask “What is it?”. The Harlem Renaissance should be taught more in schools.
The importance to understand the history of the black narrative is vital, but it is not all about discrimination and controversy. It should not be all that calls the attention of critics and in the art world. The interpretation of black figures do not have to be in crop fields like in Victor Arnautoffs murals, or in a casket with a battered face like Dana Shultz, and they most definitely do not have to be portrayed as sexualized women with toothpaste all over their bodies like Kelley Walker, or in an article about the controversy that each of these artists created. Black figures and artists are more than the controversy that comes with them. These controversies provoke the narrative of discrimination, which offers less to the fact that it is not all that black culture is. It is important for the controversies to be talked about, but let's also give the same opportunity to more black artists themselves, not how their bodies are offensively portrayed.
Although uncontroversial, Vernon Ellis painted a beautiful painting (donated by his sister Mr. George Cubberly to the Chrysler museum), yet it is tainted by the title “Negress.” The title may have been harmless, but it is an offensive term to refer to a black woman, and it goes to show how black people are seen through white eyes. It is why more black artists who portray black artists should be displayed more often. It is important to talk about black artists to present black figures in art that are created from the black culture, but also have them exist without racial connotations. Toni Morrison, an African American writer, stated in an interview in response to the question of how black writers write in a world dominated by, and informed by their relationship to white culture. Morrison responded with: “by trying to alter the language, simply to free it up, not to repress it or confine it, but to open it up. Tease it. Blast its racist straitjacket. I wrote a story entitled 'Recitatif:' in which there are two little girls in an orphanage, one white and one black. But the reader doesn't know which is white and which is black. I use class codes, but no racial codes.” as Morrison further said without the use of racial codes 'was to be forced as a writer not to be lazy and rely on obvious codes. soon as I say, black woman... I can rest on or provoke predictable responses, but if I leave it out then I have to talk about her in a complicated way - as a person.' (Toni Morrison, the art of Fiction the Paris review, fall 1993).
This leads to a great appreciation in critics like John Yau who broke down the work of Kerry James Marshall as the artwork itself, although he acknowledged the racial tones, Yau described the symbolism of the work as well as the techniques behind it. Yet at the same time he mentioned the absence of white figures in Marshall's work, which was an unnecessary statement. Where the eye is so accustomed to the display of white figures in the art that the absence of it is noticed, but the absence of black figures in art is never put into consideration. In the future, we look forward to a time where black art and people as well as other forms of art from people of color will exist in space as they are, for their beauty and expertise, and not for the racial connotations associated with it. Just as the impact and meaning of African American artist Nick Cave’s sound suits wear “alternate skins” as if it is armor. Protecting them from the connotations of race and gender. Which are completely disguised, and prejudicial prejudgment is eliminated. Where the black narrative is finally defined without constant controversy.
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Get custom essayIn conclusion, the interpretation of art, particularly the black narrative, plays a vital role in how non-black individuals perceive reality. The unfamiliarity of white critics and artists with the intellectual, conceptual, and artistic ideas that underlie the work of artists of color leads to dismissiveness and can result in the depreciation of art. The portrayal of black figures in art should be given proper consideration and placement to avoid the breeding of harmful stereotypical narratives. The creative impact of black art and artists defines the black community, and their voices should be heard, seen, and interpreted with care. The white narrative has often overwritten black history, and it is crucial to give credit to the perspectives of black culture. Unfamiliarity creates a space for dismissiveness, and it is important for white critics and artists to educate themselves on the intellectual, conceptual, and artistic ideas that underlie the work of artists of color. Art changes, but history does not, and the portrayal of the black narrative plays a significant role in the platforms of art and art criticism.
To understand how modern styles of the late 19th to early 20th century derived from and reacted against Impressionism, we must first look at the characteristics that defined this style.
Get original essayImpressionism is an artistic style that began in the 1860s in France. The method is recognizable by its depiction of the ‘impression’ of the moment utilizing the shifting of light and color to portray thoughts and emotions. What was thought of as traditional subject matter by the Academies was reduced in importance considering the use of color, tone, and texture. They developed the subject of the painting through the balancing or contrasting of colors which helped to showcase the vast and broken hues caused by sunlight on their subject matter. The content was no longer explicit, but an indistinct, lustrous, and thought-provoking fabrication of their environment.
Fauvism
Fauvism was one of the first artistic styles to emerge at the turn of the century. It's portrayed using vibrant colors and confident well-defined brushwork. In this manner, fauvism turned away from impressionism. This artistic style, while utilizing the brushwork of Impressionism, attempts to enhance the painting through emotional power and not through the effects of light and color on their subjects. As with Impressionism, the subjects were usually landscapes, pleasant, and enjoyable. Primitivism was explored with direct expression, natural allure, and control of the envisioned theme. Taking inspiration from non-European cultures allowed such exploration of what human nature meant.
Fauvism is linked to Expressionism due to the similarities in brushwork and the use of vibrant colors to shock their viewers. This style veered away from Impressionism in that regard, but also subject matter. They included additions of a ‘primitive’ nature from African, Asian, and Medieval folk art because referencing these styles in their artwork provided a more realistic compulsion. The only similarity between expressionism and impressionism is the artist’s desire to create emotion, either negative or positive, in their viewers.
As with Impressionism, Cubism was not readily accepted in the art world. Cubism was started in the early 20th century and wanted to offer a new perspective that broke even further away from Renaissance artwork. These artists, like Braque and Picasso, wanted to showcase every angle of the whole subject at the same time in a single dimension. They used abstract shapes and angles to compose their pieces, while Impressionism seems to have merely blurred the lines. Cubists challenged the perspective of depth for the viewer to see the canvas as a flat vertical curtain instead of as a window.
Dada started as a protest of art during the First World War because there was no splendor to be found in a violent war. Dadaists used ‘ready-made’ items from illustrations and advertisements to piece together a montage similar to Cubism. Some of these collages were dissident due to what was used to make them. Litter, tickets, candy wrappers, snow shovels, and urinals are a few of the things Dada artists used to piece together their artworks. Similarities between This style and Impressionism include their need to break free of the standards that high society had tried to impose upon them. However, because of the radical nature of the pieces created, they are considered as far removed from Impressionism as it is possible to get.
Surrealism is not a style of reason and balance but draws from fantasy, symbology, and dreams. Where Impressionists brought ideas from the world as they saw it, Surrealists conveyed that true reality was not structured or rational and could only be found in our unconscious minds. Also, unlike Impressionism, Surrealism did not have any single technique that expresses this artwork. Frottage, grattage, and fumage are some of the methods used by some Surrealist artists. Another platform used was the typical oil on canvas, though the subject mattered was always depicting in exact detail a world that corresponds to a hallucinogenic dreamworld.
Art in the 20th century became common for everyone to enjoy and was not meant for only the elite in society. It started to portray deeper meanings and provoke thought. As art is deciphered according to each person’s feelings and personality, various styles will offer various meanings to everyone.
In this essay I will discuss the relationship between the arts and the growing body of scientific knowledge during the Renaissance, Baroque, and Rococo periods. Beginning with the Renaissance and then continuing on to the Baroque and Rococo periods, science and art were closely related. In the early 1500s, the renaissance period brought a new way of thinking about art that was contagious and spread throughout the land. In the early 1600s, the Baroque period brought more emotion to art and a less idealistic viewpoint was portrayed.
Get original essayDuring this period traditions were tested and deeper knowledge of the world around us was gained. In the early 1700s the Rococo period was said to be the age of enlightenment, and the art reflected a lighter atmosphere.
A collective yearning for knowledge led Leonardo da Vinci to study anatomy to better understand the body so he could create better painting and sculptures. The Vitruvian Man is a piece of work created by da Vinci that blends his love of arts, and his desire to better understand science. “The drawing, which is in pen and ink on paper, depicts a man in two superimposed positions with his arms and legs apart and inscribed in a circle and square. The drawing and text are sometimes called the Canon of Proportions or, less often, Proportions of Man. ” (Wikipedia) His work was inspired by Marcus Vitruvius Pollio commonly known as Vitruvius. Vitruvis was a Roman author, architect, civil engineer and military engineer during the 1st century BC, and his discussion of perfect proportion in architecture and the human body inspired da Vinci to analyze the proportions of the human body in his drawing of the Vitruvian Man.
According to Wikipedia, Da Vinci breaks down the human body in a way that it is related to itself, with the navel being the center of the circumference of a perfect circle, and the outreached hands and feet forming the perfect square. He further breaks down the human body into relation to itself by measuring parts according to other parts. He noted that that eight heads equal height, a palm is four fingers, a foot is four palms, a cubit is six palms etc. (A cubit is the forearm length from the tip of the middle finger to the bottom of the elbow. ) (Wikipedia)
If it is not Baroque, don’t fix it! In its early years the term Baroque was actually derogatory. To call something baroque meant that it was overly exaggerated and filled with unflattering details that were real, and not idealized like the art from the Renaissance Period. It was a new concept that painted a story of an emotion at a moment in time. (New World Encyclopedia) There were great discoveries during this period that related the earth to the stars, and innovations in science mimic those changes with the arts. Tradition was questioned, and determined that it was no longer useful or beneficial for scientists. An example of this is the artwork of Galileo Galilei demonstrating his telescope, the first to be used for astronomical observations.
With his telescope, Galilei directly contradicted the Catholic Church’s teaching that the earth was the center of the universe. This contradiction was not viewed as revolutionary, and unfortunately he was placed under house arrest for the rest of his life. The doubt in tradition was inevitably placed in many people’s minds, and may perhaps have changed the art of this time.
The Rococo art was an age of enlightenment, and the use of light colors, such as pastels were used create beautiful pieces. Attention to detail, ornamentation and the use of bright light colors broadened, as artists moved away from the Baroque style. The style of Rococo art was playful and light hearted, not serious and stern like that art during the baroque period. Life was about pleasure during this time period for those who were in the market to purchase this art. An example is Joseph Wright of Derby's painting A Philosopher Giving a Lecture at the Orrery (1765). The painting depicts a mechanical model of the solar system, and was used to show the orbit of the planets around the sun. It has been stated that it made the universe seem almost like a clock. (Khan Academy)
In conclusion, the journeys of art and science together have directed the teachings of humans through space and time. A picture can paint a thousand words, and art has helped teach those who were illiterate by portraying a demonstrative message. Art and science have been intertwined through time and have conveyed messages in their pieces showing the principles of religion, theories of science scholars, and playful lighthearted humanly pleasures. We would not be as advanced of a species if we didn’t have the ability to communicate science through art.
The graphic novel Maus by Art Speigelman displays an increasingly tense relationship between him and his father, Vladek. Although Vladek is initially portrayed as frivolous, contriving, self-pitying, detrimentally offensive to his loved ones, and compulsive, the reader eventually learns, through his recollection of the horrors of the Holocaust that Vladek is this way because of the hellish prison that Adolf Hitler placed him in. Throughout this essay I will analyze the father-son relationship between Vladek and Art through close reading using themes such as time, guilt, and miscommunication that run rampant throughout their damaged relationship. I will discuss ways in which Maus themes such as racial issues, xenophobia, and historical trauma pave the way for generational trauma in regards to Vladek and Art, and how this trauma negatively affects their relationship even more. I will also discuss the ways in which Art is a trauma survivor too, and back up my belief with examples from his very own tangible emotions laid out for readers like myself in Maus.
Get original essayIn Art Spiegelman’s ?Maus I ?and ?Maus II, ?his use of language and pictures functioned not just towards developing the narrative, but also a tool towards working through the intergenerational trauma that’s a result of parents’ experiences during the Holocaust. In the book we discover that although Spiegelman began by illustrating his father’s experiences during the holocaust, Spiegelman explores his own trauma through the concept known as post-memory. Post-memory is described as the way in which children of first-generation trauma survivors, that being his parents, relate to said trauma. This correlates with intergenerational trauma, an issue he experiences, considering that often the trauma felt by the second generation is overshadowed by the first generation’s. In this case, the trauma his parents experienced was the Holocaust, with adverse effects that continued to reverberate future generations, befalling onto Spiegelman.
Throughout Maus, Vladek can be seen reprimanding Art for several petty infringements such as making a mess with cigarette ash while Vladek reluctantly recounts one of many belittling experiences in the concentration camp involving an officer rebuking him for making a mess of the camp. This correlation between past and present events causes Art to start feeling guilty for the standoffish way he has always treated his father, and instills a deep sense of guilt within his heart. From throwing out Art’s coat to burning Anja’s diaries, Vladek was constantly doing things that upset Art, and vice versa. Through close reading I realized that many of these transgressions were simply misunderstandings, and had Art and Vladek realized this, their relationship may have been quite different. Constantly grasping for a father figure, Art is blinded by Vladek’s angry and neurotic antics, and upset about the distance between him and his son, along with haunting memories of the Holocaust and the tragic suicide of his first wife, Vladek is not able to act as a proper father figure for Art. Eventually, Art becomes so deprived, confused, and lonely that he wishes he had been at Auschwitz with his parents just so he could truly know what they went through. This is an extreme sign of generational trauma that resulted from years and years of Vladek incorrectly attempting to deal with his own trauma. Emotion runs rampant through this graphic novel, and aids in explaining the complex father and son relationship that is portrayed.
Hidden behind Vladek’s recount of his traumatic past in the camps is Art coming to terms with the way history has affected his father. In the beginning and end of each chapter, the reader is hit with an emotional wave of Art’s feelings in the present after hearing what his father had to say that day about the Holocaust. At the beginning and end of each chapter, Art describes how frustrated and guilty he feels when it comes to his relationship with his father. In the beginning, Art describes his father as he is- a traumatized survivor just trying to cope with what once went on all around him, all the while being a finicky, self-pitying old man. As the plot thickens, so does Art’s understanding of his father through first hand stories of what his father went through. Aat first the reader may find themselves against Vladek due to the way he treats those around him in the present, but as the story progresses, it is easy to come to terms with why Vladek is the way he is. One example of Art’s progressively heightened understanding as the book goes on is when Vladek accidentally calls him, Art’s brother that was murdered in the ghettos. In the beginning of the story, if Vladek had slipped up and made this mistake, Art may have become irate with his due to the belief that his father loved Richieu more, but at the point in the story when Vladek actually does call him Richieu, it can be noted that Art actually feels content with his father’s mistake, and Art sees that it was out of love for both him and his brother.
I appreciate the graphic novel recount of this particular subject because I believe it is able to engage the reader in ways that common novels cannot. Throughout Maus, a reoccurring motif is a chimney, illustrating victims’ brutal fate without actually having to say it. This reoccurring chimney symbolizes the constant weight of fear on the shoulders of the Holocaust victims; fear that they might soon be exterminated. Another reason a graphic novel was a wonderful way for Art to recount his father’s story is because he can simultaneously show how he feels without interrupting his father’s narrative and vice versa. I don’t believe that this could be done in the form of a novel.
After analyzing Vladek and Art’s relationship, Vladek’s strange quirks cause Art to be annoyed by him in many ways. Although Art’s mission was to get his father’s story out there, his father’s mannerisms annoy him greatly along the way. The outbursts between father and son throughout this story soon become a source of guilt for Art, as he copes with trying to understand why his father acts the way he does. This major theme of guilt is shown throughout the graphic novel in many ways. Art feels guilty for not being a good son, Art feels guilty for the suicide of his mother, and Art feels guilty for becoming successful and capitalizing off of Maus. “Maybe your father needed to show that he was always right – that he could always survive – because he felt guilty about surviving. And he took his guilt out on you, where it was safe…on the real survivor”. This quote from Maus describes the tension between father and son and its cause, guilt. Vladek was constantly feeling survivor’s guilt, after the death of so many fellow Jews and the death of Anja, causing him to take it out on his son, “the real survivor”. But the question remains about whether or not Art believes his is a real survivor, due to the fact that he always feels extremely down about himself due to his relationship with his father and his guilt.
It is very important for the reader to see that Art is impacted by his father’s traumatic narrative so that the reader can fully grasp what second-generation trauma means when it comes to the relationship between father and son. Art even goes so far as to state, “I know this is insane, but I somehow wish I had been in Auschwitz with my parents so I could really know what they lived through! … I guess it’s some kind of guilt about having had an easier life than they did.” This truly displays the heartbreaking impact of Vladek’s recount; his story had affected his son to the point where in order to fully understand his father’s grief, he wanted to put himself in his father’s shoes…literally. The impact of his father’s grief and his mother’s suicide shaped Art as a person, and in order to be able to tell his story completely, Art had to put all of this out on the table for readers.
Vladek’s character had been greatly shaped by the Holocaust, and this shows throughout the graphic novel as he is unable to lead a normal life, as well as Mala and Art calling him out for his behavior. Vladek’s instinct is to ration money and food in case tragedy strikes again, and he has certainly taken up a particular xenophobia due to Hitler’s control over Jews during WWII. Vladek is also obsessive compulsive, which causes Mala and Art great annoyance, only straining their relationships even more. Vladek has also isolated himself from the public due to his extreme trauma. Art actually helps Vladek give meaning to his survival by having him tell stories from his treacherous past, but this does not happen without many obstacles between the two. The form of the graphic novel allows Art to candidly lay out his worries about depicting his father’s frugality. He worried that displaying the truth about how cheap his father is would perpetuate the stereotype of the “cheap Jew”, but the strain that this quality put on his family was too much not to share.
Art’s fascination with recording Vladek’s description of the Holocaust forces him to associate with his father much more often than usual, and Vladek’s grumpy resistance doesn’t help a bit. The beginning of Maus illustrates this, and shows that neither father nor son are able to understand each other and relate to what the other is going through. Art cannot get over the fact that his father is having a hard time recounting what happened to him during his horrific past, and Art is having trouble placing himself in his father’s shoes. This causes frustration to build within Art, and he tries to force information out of his father that his father no longer has due to trauma. Pretty soon, Art discovers that Vladek has destroyed Anja’s journals, the only tangible evidence of her life left over, and Art calls Vladek a murderer, only setting them farther apart than they were before. “Congratulations! … You’ve committed the perfect crime … You put me here … shorted all my circuits … cut my nerve endings … and crossed my wires! … You murdered me, Mommy, and you left me here to take the rap!!!” Art feels betrayed by both of his parents for their actions due to the Holocaust, and he is still unable to put himself in their shoes. He feels that they are very selfish, and he doesn’t think their actions were fair to him because he was just a kid.
Another aspect that separates Art from his father is his father’s estate. “Talking about your estate just makes me uncomfortable.” He’s also concerned with his father’s legacy “in a broader sense, in the sense of a cultural tradition, and also in the sense of psychological or emotional baggage” (Shmoop). Along with the looming memory of “the perfect child” Richieu, and the lack of input from Anja due to her suicide, Art feels overwhelmed by grief, guilt, loss, and misunderstanding. Art is forced to deal with looking at a large, blurry, framed photo of his late brother, and states, “it’s spooky, having sibling rivalry with a snapshot”. Art also feels skepticism towards his father’s ability to love, which he shows through the illustration of his father’s relationship with Mala. Art has to deal with his father’s obsessive-compulsive ways, while his father has to deal with what he endured in his past. “Pop just wanted to leavethe leftover food around until I ate it. Sometimes he’d evensave it to serve again and again until I’d eat it or starve”, states Art, in reference to his father’s ways. One of the reasons that I believe Art drew most of Maus in an almost childlike way, using mice as characters, is because he was unable to fully visualize his father’s reality. Prisoner on Hell Planet, on the other hand, is drawn very differently, and in great detail, because it was all about the ways Art felt during his mothers suicide, almost like a trip inside of his brain.
Art displays how much his father makes him feel incompetent, because, after all, nothing Art did would ever be as awesome as surviving the Holocaust. Vladek even thought him becoming an artist was a bad idea; he didn’t think it would make Art any money. Art feels as if his father thinks that if Richieu was still alive, that he would be the ideal child. “The photo never threw tantrums or got in any kind of trouble… it was an ideal kid. And I was a pain in the ass. I couldn’t compete”. Art believes, and Vladek validates, that every small mistake he makes causes Vladek to think of how perfect Richieu would have been in the same situations. In reference to his father’s abnormal behavior, “in some ways he didn’t survive”, Artie says, and looking at the pathetic figure that Vladek cuts, whencompared to the pre war resourceful young Vladek, one cannot but help agree with Artie”. Art’s whole life, Vladek has been so distant that Art believes that while Vladek’s body survived the Holocaust, not all of his soul did.
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Get custom essayAll in all, Maus not only demonstrates the atrocities that Vladek went through in the Holocaust, but also the strong sense of guilt and disconnect that his son feels as he goes through life everyday with a father who survived the Holocaust. Many second generation trauma victims feel this way about their family members who have endured horrific events in their past, and a plethora of other feelings come up, also. Art demonstrates his own feelings in Prisoner on Hell Planet, while simultaneously striving to display his father’s recount of the Holocaust.“Maus is part of second-generation literature that strives to both learn about the influence of the first generation’s past on their present, and to work through and comprehend their relationship and identity in the context of this traumatic and absent past” (Blanchard).
When one generally thinks of art therapy, the use of it with some of society’s most dangerous individuals does not naturally spring to mind. Prison inmates are a unique cohort living in an unnatural environment. Cognitive or behavioural issues may have contributed to an individual being incarcerated and being confined to a single facility for potentially long periods brings up challenges for rehabilitation.
Get original essayThis Literature review will look at five studies carried out over approximately the last 10 years in chronological order, ranging from reducing depression in inmates to applying art therapy to difficult cases involving schizophrenia. It will conclude with outlining some potential shortcomings arising in the studies; though the overall results are promising with implementing the use of art therapy within the prison environment.
Pearson and Wilson (2009) attest that art therapy provides a mechanism for expressing and communicating personal experiences from the depths of the human soul. Not only does it allow the expression of non-verbal thinking but the act of creating within a therapeutic space is a moment to focus energetic drives, process personal behaviours and seek a unified emotional and mental state (pp. 169-170). Nowhere does this seem more required than in a population that is sometimes forgotten by the general populous; that of inmates in prison.
The history of the use of art therapy within the prison environment can be traced back to the work of Levy (1978) in her work with female inmates displaying aggressive behaviours. Levy discovered the use of art therapy as a non-verbal therapeutic technique successful in realizing “untapped material” (p. 157) which may have explained the source of the inmate’s aggressive behaviour. Within the prison environment, the benefits of art therapy endure with ongoing studies spearheaded by David Gussak.
Gussak’s (2007) study examined the effectiveness of art therapy in reducing depression in prison populations. In an environment where the clients can have an inherent mistrust for verbal disclosure and rigid defenses for basic survival (p. 444), art therapy was seen as an alternative avenue for developing the essential sense of trust and safety required for the therapeutic alliance to flourish (Pearson & Wilson, 2009, p. 170). The study was conducted with male inmates in a North Florida prison in medium to maximum security, and chosen by the mental health counsellor. All participants had Axis I diagnosis such as depression, despondency or manic type bipolar disorder. Gussak utilized the Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale (FEATS); the Beck Depression Inventory-Short Form (BDI-II) (Beck, Rial, & Rickets, 1974, as cited in Gussak, 2007, p.454); and a personally developed 6-point Likert-type survey once before the intervention, and once after. The art tasks began with simple individual exercises such as a name embellishment and self-symbol activity, through to more complex group work such as collaborating to build a paper bridge and group mandala work. These were used in conjunction with an art directive, which consisted of each inmate drawing a picture of a person picking an apple from a tree (PPAT) using standardized art materials, to ascertain any therapeutic change (Gussak, 2007, p. 444-448).
Gussak (2007) found that posttest PPAT drawings reflected increased space used, extensively greater details, and higher compositional integration; thus reflected a greater awareness of their surroundings. Results also showed that inmate participants showed a stronger investment in the therapeutic process, a greater display of compliance of directives with staff, increased socialization skills, and a significant decrease in depressive symptoms with an elevation of mood (pp. 449-456). The results from this study were promising with working in a uniquely difficult environment. A year later, Michael Hanes took an art therapeutic modality one step further in working with greater at risk inmates; those on suicide watch.
Hanes (2008) applied his art therapy modality in an American County Jail where clinicians, with limited availability of resources, were tasked to evaluate an inmate’s risk of suicide solely upon self-reporting of their internal mental state, behavioural patterns and life history. The use of Road Drawings was implemented due to their ease of use with limited safe materials as to lower potential security risks; a 2B pencil (shortened to 3 inches), 8 crayons and paper (pp. 78-80).
Hanes (2008) theorized that the use of drawing a road, which he believed is a universally understood symbol, can function as a metaphor as the inmate’s “road of life” (p. 79); thus bringing forth vital information that the inmate may be reluctant to disclose in a standard verbal therapeutic setting (p. 83). Hanes found that inmates were able to reflect on their Road Drawings as a way to self-assess their capacity for change, transform destructive patterns of thinking and actions, and imbue hope and optimism for their future (p.83). This ‘process drawing’, outlined in Pearson and Wilson (2009), supports ventilation and catharsis by use of colour, lines and shapes to express and release internal feelings (pp. 181-182). This is a projective technique which allows the focus to be on reparative methods instead of beginning with a problem focus approach. It facilitates the opportunity for inmates to create their story and express their unique perception of reality, rather than focusing on established literal facts (p, 172) which may be presented in their case history. Given that depression has been found to be the leading predictor of suicide amongst inmates (Suto & Arnaut, 2010, pp. 294-295, 302-304), a study was done to investigate this further.
Gussak (2009b) revisited his study from 2007 with the inclusion of female inmates, so to advance his previous research base. He simultaneously theorized whether art therapy would assist in improving the inmate’s mood, socialization skills, problem-solving skills, and Locus of Control (LOC) (p. 6). As LOC is the degree of control that an individual feels he or she has over their environment, with external LOC indicating a tendency to believe outside influences control one’s behaviour and internal LOC having a sense that one is in control of one’s destiny (Bayse, Allgood, & van Wyk, 1992); Gussak (2009b) believed inmates may have a tendency towards exhibiting a greater external LOC. This correlated with his findings that there is a direct relationship between LOC and depression; the greater the external LOC, the greater chance of displaying depressive symptoms (p. 6).
Gussak (2009b) followed a similar format to how the therapeutic sessions were run in his 2007 study; beginning with simple individual art work which progressed to group orientated art work, thus facilitating problem-solving skills. The addition of the Adult Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale (ANSLOC) was utilized to assess interpersonal and motivational areas for a change in LOC. This was achieved by a simple Yes and No questionnaire (p. 6-7).
The results were a significant change in the male and female inmate’s ANSLOC scores from external to internal. Gussak (2009b) concluded that through art therapy, inmates learnt to manipulate the art materials to accomplish their desired effect and learnt cause and effect through this creative therapeutic process; this knowledge then became internalized (p. 10). Gussak (2009a) revisited his results and found a substantial improvement in mood and internal LOC within the female inmate participants compared to males. As it has been shown that female inmates are potentially more susceptible to depression (Harris, 1993), experience more difficulty with depression (Butterfield, 2003), and display a greater external LOC (DeWolfe, Jackson, & Winterberger, 1988); Gussak (2009a) concluded that his results highlighted the notion that female inmates undertaking art therapy had a greater scope to change (pp. 202-207). Up until this point, art therapy had shown flexibility in working with both male and female inmates. Investigating its adaptability with another therapeutic modality was achieved.
Breiner, Tuomisto, Bouyea, Gussak, & Aufderheide (2012) used art therapy within a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) framework at the Wakulla Correctional Institution in Florida. It targeted anger management with inmates who previously had a history of anger issues or interpersonal violence. The basic assumptions of CBT are that problematic thinking leads to problematic emotional and behavioural consequences, and this problematic thinking is either learned or is resultant from a lack of learning. The goal of CBT to identify these errors in thinking and to help the client to correct them by acquiring the cognitive skills to assist in eliminating problematic behaviour (pp. 1125-1127).
Breiner et al’s (2012) reasoning for incorporating art therapy was to accommodate the treatment to the individual inmate’s unique characteristics which they believed was beyond the scope of the standard CBT tools. The flexibility and variability in art therapy allowed them to undertake the treatment with clients showing a diverse level of verbal ability and intellectual capacity (pp. 1139-1140). This was achieved with an art therapy directive known as “The Water Contamination Exercise.” A 3 piece drawing of water being contaminated by 3 different sources, and the effect that has on the water being produced at the end of an irrigation system. It was designed to assist the inmates to comprehend how underlying attitudes can generate the thoughts that may occur in response to a trigger (p. 1135-1136). For the inmates it was an easy pictorial way in understanding cognitive restructuring using the ABCD model from CBT developed by Albert Ellis (Ellis, 2006).
Breiner et al (2012) found that art therapy engaged the inmates more in the therapy process by assisting group members to access emotions that may be difficult or troublesome to express. It assisted in calming inmates who were displaying signs or nervousness or distress about being in this particular group setting. They found the art therapy tasks complimented the CBT material which made it more readily accessible to the inmates with different learning styles, intellectual barriers, and personality traits that may have impacted their ability to understand the material (p 1140). These results displayed the adaptability of art therapy to work within another established therapeutic modality. Another challenge was whether art therapy could be successfully applied to inmates with a severe mental disorder.
Qiu et al (2017) examined the effect of an art brut therapy program with prison inmates, on mainland China, that have been diagnosed with schizophrenia. Inmates with schizophrenia display a very rigid self-defense mechanism, which can be externalized through silence or lies. This is due in part for the need for basic survival coping strategies against possible threats from other inmates. Compounding this is the high rate of illiteracy with a decreased level of verbal communication in the prison setting. This is challenging for inmates with schizophrenia to be able to vocalize their emotional and mental issues, such as depression, which has been shown to be prevalent in prisons (p. 1070).
Art Brut, also known as “outsider art” or “raw art”, is art without limitations. Its style, or lack of, is used to describe art created outside the normal boundaries of mainstream art or culture. Qui et al (2017) decision to use this particular art modality was due to the clients they were working with. An art exercise that was directive in nature would not have been received well by the clients with schizophrenia (p. 1069). The format of the sessions began with free process drawing (Pearson & Wilson, 2009, pp. 181-182), followed by a 15-25 minute focus one-on-one interview where the client talked about their art with the therapist giving advice on how to enrich their drawing for future sessions, then group discussion were everyone was allowed to discuss other’s works by giving comments and compliments (Qiu et al, 2017, pp. 1070-1071).
Qiu et al (2017) reported witnessing a decrease in anxiety, depression, anger, and negative psychiatric symptoms with the inmates. They also showed greater compliance with rules and medications, and increased socialization with peers (pp. 1069-1078). Although each study has shown the benefits of using art therapy within the prison environment, there are some notable shortcomings which cannot be dismissed.
Participants in Gussak’s (2007) initial study were not randomly chosen, instead selected by the counsellor due to previously having worked with them. Cooperation in the study may have also been considered as practicing ‘good behaviour’ in the prison environment, thus deserving the inmates of extra privileges (p. 452-453). Gussak (2009a) rectified this in his follow up study though he acknowledged his random sample sizes were too small (p. 10).
Gussak’s (2007, 2009a), Hanes (2008), and Breiner et al (2012) studies were all conducted in a geographically specific location, Florida. Although this helped with reinforcing results from the studies, it does substantially hinder the applicability to other geographically diverse populations.
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Get custom essayThe study by Qui et al (2017) appears to break a fundamental rule outlined by Pearson and Wilson (2009) in that an expressive therapist, or other client’s, should avoid analyzing the client’s creations. The goal is transformation through the art instead of educating or instructing so the completed piece can be admired (p. 170-171, 190).