Jaques-Louis David, Intervention of the Sabine Women, 1799. Louvre, Paris.
Artists occasionally find themselves tempted — or is it obliged, to be 'political'. But what that means is a big question. Is it just a matter of making artworks with political content? Or does it involve intervening in political struggle? But is art good at intervening? Does it matter, in immediate political terms, that a painting or a poster is against X and for Y?
Internationally renowned art historian, Professor T J Clark, asks these questions of two examples of art made in revolutionary circumstances. The first is Jaques-Louis David's Intervention of the Sabine Women, an enormous canvas shown in the Louvre in 1799 — in the aftermath of the French Revolution. The second is a cluster of 'interventions' — posters, wall texts, strip cartoons, graffiti — produced by a group called the Situationist International in Paris in 1967-68. Are these two instances of 'art-and-politics' comparable? What were the artists (or non-artists) hoping to achieve? Did they succeed? What do we mean by 'success' in such cases?
Those Passions: On Art and Politics by T J Clark is published by Thames and Hudson (20 February 2025). Ticket holders will receive a code to use for 25% off via their website. UK orders only.
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