by Rachel Liang
When we imagine social uprisings, things that typically come to mind are collective actions such as marching and boycotting. These methods of rebellion are extraordinary ways that have been used throughout time to demand justice and rights for historically marginalized communities. However, did you know that art can also be a powerful tool for social movements?
It turns out that art-making is an invaluable way to educate others on societal issues, bring communities together, and help envision a more just future! Teamwork and community ideas are as important as individualistic art. Authors David Donahue and Jennifer Stuart emphasize the importance of community art-making in their book Artful Teaching: Integrating the Arts for Understanding Across the Curriculum, K-8. Centered around community-engaged learning, students develop “civic and social responsibility, crossing various boundaries of identity such as race and disability, learning empathy for others, honoring multiple perspectives, and creating reciprocal relationships” (49).
Children help paint a street mural at the Climate Action March in San Fransisco, CA in 2018. Photo: Fabrice Florin, 2018.
Art can also take the form of socially engaged science fiction. In an interview about her anthology, Octavia’s Brood, co-edited with Adrienne Brown, Walidah Imarisha stated, “Any time we try to envision a different world—without poverty, prisons, capitalism, war—we are engaging in science fiction. When we can dream those realities together, that’s when we can begin to build them right here and now.” In this article, Imarisha refers to writing science fiction to create change, but I believe this conceptualization of science fiction applies to visual arts as well. Art-making involves imagination, after all, so we can use it to visualize solutions for building a more equitable future!
Many artists create pieces through this community-oriented and visionary perspective. Claire Sianna Seaman and Madjeen Isaac are two artists blending themes of environmentalism and community. Washington-based Seaman’s “Imagining Climate Resilience in the Pacific Northwest” is an oil painting triptych depicting the transition from an industrial, polluted environment to a forward-looking view of reforestation, solar power, and farmers’ markets in the Pacific Northwest landscape. Seaman mentions that the piece’s purpose is “... to imagine a future in which we've acted to limit climate change and adapt to the changes we cannot avoid, leaving our region more equitable, sustainable and just.”
Isaac, a Haitian American artist, also introduces science fiction in her painting “In the Palm of Our Hands.” This piece explores how both climate resilience and connectedness can be strengthened in her Caribbean community in Brooklyn, NY through collective work for social transformation. In an article by Yale Climate Connections, Isaac observes that in Brooklyn, “There’s so many large brown buildings with huge lawns… what if we had more autonomy with the spaces that we occupy? And how can we transform these lawns and our rooftops and grow our own foods to live off of?” “In the Palm of Our Hands” envisions just that—her neighborhood is reimagined with community gardens and reconnected with traditional Caribbean agricultural methods.
What We Do by Rachel Liang, 2024 for Climable.
As an artist myself, this is important knowledge. By observing how art has empowered activism through the works of Isaac, Seaman, and others, it’s clear to me that artistic expression can ignite positive social change. Now, I strive to incorporate science fiction and community-centered elements in my work. For example, during my internship at Climable, I created the above illustration for the nonprofit’s website. It visualizes the future Climable is working to create in urban neighborhoods through clean energy education and accessibility. Having discussions with my coworkers about their passions and goals for increasing resilience within communities inspired many parts of my graphic. If you’re in a position to do so, I recommend partaking in a similar dialogue! Regardless, the next time you pick up a pencil or a paintbrush, think about what you wish could be in your world and how you can envision it. Then invite someone else to share their ideas with you too!