The Role of South African Educational Institutions in Re-engaging the Socially Transformative Potential of Art

Abstract

This article argues that much of established art production and reception in South Africa operates in ways which detract from the critical emancipatory potential of art and cultural production. It is argued that art can be a critical and democratic tool, in as far as it might work against or outside of established institutions which are invariably enlisted in the service of maintaining the status quo. The article is a partisan call to promote socially engaged art production, and, in order to facilitate this, for the radical transformation of educational institutions. Existing educational institutional practices which seek to engage society through art practice are considered. These examples might shed light on the workings of institutionalized power and open up possibilities for thinking about more democratic and inclusive modes of cultural production, which are not necessarily translatable to the established ‘art world’.