Art of Influence

In 2013 the Museum of Australian Democracy will explore the Art of Influence.  It will be a connecting theme running through the museum’s exhibitions and public programs throughout the year, featuring contemporary Indigenous artworks, communist propaganda, works by major Australian artist Arthur Boyd, and political cartoons.  All position the artist as activist, influencing and influenced by the changing nature of Australia’s democracy in a challenging and at times troubled relationship.

Democracy is all about influence. We try to influence others to adopt our views; everyone tries to influence us.  Artists, as citizens in a democracy participate in these flows of influence.  Artists are influenced by politics; artists influence politics through art. Art of Influence will encourage visitors to explore for themselves connections between art, politics and beyond into the ways Australians influence each other in democratic discourse.

Art of Influence is not just a conversation about the nature of art or politics, it is a way to investigate the relationship between art and democracy in Australia in the past, present and future.

Art of Influence is a multifaceted program offered throughout 2013.  It will begin with:

Art is a weapon

December 2012 to February 2014

Based on a portfolio of 14 linocuts created by the Melbourne Popular Art Group to commemorate the 1954 centenary of the Eureka Stockade incident at Ballarat, this exhibition will explore the appropriation of Eureka by all sides of politics as a means of influencing political opinion in Australia.

Behind the Lines: The year’s best political cartoons 2012

December 2012 to November 2013

Behind the Lines 2012 looks back on the highs and lows of the political year through the eyes of Australia’s best cartoonists.  Their observations of the personalities, parties and political power-plays are insightful, amusing and emotive – but do they influence voters or the politicians who are so often their targets.  Explore the controversies, crises and sometimes unintentional comedy of the political year that was.

Arthur Boyd: An Empathetic Eye

May to July 2013

An exhibition which interprets the Australian artist Arthur Boyd as a political activist and engaged citizen. This is the first major exhibition to consider the social consciousness that infused Arthur Boyd’s art and to convey the political life of Boyd, linking his actions with his artwork. Paintings, prints, ceramics and other materials from the Bundanon Trust collection offer insights into how one of Australia’s greatest artists dealt with the social responsibility that defines humanity. The exhibition includes works by Boyd’s contemporaries and is supported by loans from public and private collections, photographs and other documents.

Free after entry.

For more information visit www.moadoph.gov.au

Image: Where is my vote? 2009 (detail) by Penny Byrne. Jeremy Dillon.