Agitprop!

The Brooklyn Museum’s Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, presents the third and final installation of Agitprop!, an exhibition that explores the legacy and continued power of politically engaged art. The fully realized exhibition opens on April 6 and will be on view through August 7 with a dynamic and thought-provoking installation featuring a full range of material, including photography and film, prints and banners, street actions and songs, and TV shows, social media, and performances.

As part of the exhibition’s opening, the Museum is pleased to present a special live performance by artist Charles Gaines who will perform Sound Text (2015) and excerpts from Manifestos (2008) on Thursday, April 7 at 7pm. He will be accompanied by Sean Griffin, composer and director of Opera Povera, and an eight-piece ensemble with a large-scale video projection. Admission is free.

The first wave of Agitprop! opened on December 11 with five case studies in early agitprop and 20 contemporary art projects selected by the Sackler Center staff. The second wave opened on February 17 with selections by the first round of contemporary participants; this second group invited the final round of artists. In total, more than 50 contemporary fusions of art and political action, involving hundreds of contributors, will be exhibited.

Third wave artists include Andrea Bowers (nominated by Nancy Buchanan), Ato Malinda (nominated by Jelili Atiku), Beatriz Santiago Muñoz (nominated by Laurie Jo Reynolds), Combat Papers (nominated by Interference Archive), Enmedio (nominated by Not An Alternative), Faith47 (nominated by Lady Pink), Ivan Cash and Andy Dao (nominated by Andrew Tider and Jeff Greenspan), Kushboo Gulati (nominated by Thenmozhi Soundarajan), Manuela Ribadeneira (nominated by Luis Camnitzer), Rena Rädle and Vladan Jeremic (nominated by Marina Naprushkina), Pussy Riot (nominated by Amnesty International), Studio Rev (nominated by Jenny Polak), Visual AIDS (nominated by L. J. Roberts), The Illuminator (nominated by Ultra-red), and Weird Allan Kaprow (nominated by Shani Peters).

The term “agitprop” emerged from the Russian Revolution almost a hundred years ago, combining the words “agitation” and “propaganda” to describe art practices intended to incite social change. Connecting current creative practices with strategies from the early 20th century, these projects show artists responding to the pressing questions of their day and seeking to motivate broad, diverse audiences.

Agitprop! is organized by the staff of the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art: Saisha Grayson, former Assistant Curator; Catherine Morris, Sackler Family Curator; Stephanie Weissberg, Curatorial Assistant; and with Jess Wilcox, former Programs Manager.

This exhibition is made possible in part by the Embrey Family Foundation, The Andy Warhol Foundationfor the Visual Arts, the FUNd, and the Helene Zucker Seeman Memorial Exhibition Fund.
 

Media contact: Sarah Lukacher, Public Information Associate
T (718) 501 6354 / sarah.lukacher [​at​] brooklynmuseum.org