Review of Vid Simoniti, Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), New Haven: Yale University Press

With Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), Vid Simoniti surveys recent exhibition-based contemporary art (most since 2016) that ‘glimpse possibilities for repairing the world’. By deferring to institutional definitions of art, Simoniti avoids having to defend whether exhibited...

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Main Author: Sue Spaid
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nederlands Genootschap voor Esthetica (Dutch Association of Aesthetics) 2024-12-01
Series:Aesthetic Investigations
Subjects:
Online Access:https://aestheticinvestigations.eu/article/view/19494
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author Sue Spaid
author_facet Sue Spaid
author_sort Sue Spaid
collection DOAJ
description With Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), Vid Simoniti surveys recent exhibition-based contemporary art (most since 2016) that ‘glimpse possibilities for repairing the world’. By deferring to institutional definitions of art, Simoniti avoids having to defend whether exhibited objects are art, yet this approach ignores the fact that not all exhibited objects begin/endure as art, let alone begin/endure as political art. Early on, he admits of a paradox regarding exhibition-based political art, that is, it can feel ‘forbiddingly abstruse, experimental, hard to access, inward looking, even elitist’. Simoniti’s introduction describes his aim to demonstrate how ‘through art, we momentarily remake the world as we know it’. He develops this argument over seven chapters beginning with ‘when and how art contemporary art became political’, then ‘Realism for our time: on art and truth’, ‘unity and utopia: on socially engaged art’, ‘worldmaking: on the role of aesthetics in political art’, ‘spectacle and surveillance: on art in the internet age’, ‘creativity in the face of extinction: on art and climate change’, and finally ‘remaking the world’s hinges’.
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spelling doaj-art-862da29e922f46c9bd99130fc5d359e32025-01-09T13:33:07ZengNederlands Genootschap voor Esthetica (Dutch Association of Aesthetics)Aesthetic Investigations2352-27042024-12-017110.58519/00e4sg86Review of Vid Simoniti, Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), New Haven: Yale University PressSue Spaid0Northern Kentucky University With Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), Vid Simoniti surveys recent exhibition-based contemporary art (most since 2016) that ‘glimpse possibilities for repairing the world’. By deferring to institutional definitions of art, Simoniti avoids having to defend whether exhibited objects are art, yet this approach ignores the fact that not all exhibited objects begin/endure as art, let alone begin/endure as political art. Early on, he admits of a paradox regarding exhibition-based political art, that is, it can feel ‘forbiddingly abstruse, experimental, hard to access, inward looking, even elitist’. Simoniti’s introduction describes his aim to demonstrate how ‘through art, we momentarily remake the world as we know it’. He develops this argument over seven chapters beginning with ‘when and how art contemporary art became political’, then ‘Realism for our time: on art and truth’, ‘unity and utopia: on socially engaged art’, ‘worldmaking: on the role of aesthetics in political art’, ‘spectacle and surveillance: on art in the internet age’, ‘creativity in the face of extinction: on art and climate change’, and finally ‘remaking the world’s hinges’. https://aestheticinvestigations.eu/article/view/19494contemporary artpolitical artworldmakingsocially-engaged practices discourseactivist art
spellingShingle Sue Spaid
Review of Vid Simoniti, Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), New Haven: Yale University Press
Aesthetic Investigations
contemporary art
political art
worldmaking
socially-engaged practices
discourse
activist art
title Review of Vid Simoniti, Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), New Haven: Yale University Press
title_full Review of Vid Simoniti, Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), New Haven: Yale University Press
title_fullStr Review of Vid Simoniti, Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), New Haven: Yale University Press
title_full_unstemmed Review of Vid Simoniti, Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), New Haven: Yale University Press
title_short Review of Vid Simoniti, Artists Remake the World: A Contemporary Manifesto (2023), New Haven: Yale University Press
title_sort review of vid simoniti artists remake the world a contemporary manifesto 2023 new haven yale university press
topic contemporary art
political art
worldmaking
socially-engaged practices
discourse
activist art
url https://aestheticinvestigations.eu/article/view/19494
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