Congo stars exhibition in Kunsthaus- social critique in painting

   Banksy's self-shredding painting last week has created quite a buzz in not only the art world but the news and many social media sites as well. Humorously, I was even able to update my facebook profile picture with a shredding frame, which I lost no time in doing. It will revert back to normal after a week, the usual amount of time things are allowed to capture our attention in this fast-paced world in which we live. The shredding picture is funny and ironic as it is a critique of the art world created by an accepted social critic. It should come as no surprise to anyone that an artist known throughout his entire career for challenging social norms and social injustice would take the art world to task as well.

 Along with Banksy, I have always appreciated the work of Ai Weiwei whose work is socially critical of Chinese society and laws. He expresses himself with such elegance and finesse that it is in no way aggressive.  In fact, it is only when looking at either the big picture of his exhibitions or reading about his work that you fully realize the critiques he is making. This does not detract from those points, however, since his work is well worth reading up on.

   A few weeks ago I visited the 'Congo Stars' exhibition at the local modern art museum. Although I am not political or particularly socially critical in my own art- my emphasis being to find beauty and inspiration in the humdrum of daily life as lived by the majority of people, I appreciate artists whose work highlights gross injustices as well as  revealing unhealthy situations that may otherwise go unseen by the larger community or world. Congo stars has both. Vibrant colors, happy scenes, disaster, disease, and more. It highlights the raw human emotions as well as the devastation experienced by people at the hands of abuse of power, natural disaster, western interest and exploitation, war, and aids. Although I can say a lot about these topics, why not allow the artists from Congo (most are from Kinshasa ) to express themselves through their paintings. The work is so numerous and represents so many levels of ability and style that I can only recommend a visit. In the meantime, I would like to share a few of my favorite pieces from the show. I have roughly categorized the pictures by the most common themes.

SIDA (AIDS)

Malaria:

    I love the saying on this picture: I am not racist, I bite the whole world!

Women:

 The woman as the heart of the family

Poverty and the moral decline associated with it:

The struggles of urban Life:

 

The hopelessness of ethnic groups left without a future:

money and power:

   One of the tables of work I found most interesting was a grouping of portraits created based on passport photos. These are often less expensive than buying an enlargement of the photo itself. The skill of the portrait artists was impressive. I found the fact that their work was cheaper than a photo enlargement rather more revealing of the financial situation of the average person than some of the paintings were.

Many of the works were painted on Flour sacks and stratched in France ( I believe, based on the frames). Which just goes to show that a good artist can produce good work even with minimal supplies. It may not be all that long lasting, though.

   Are you an artist? Do you use your skill to critique social norms? Have you used it to point out specific issues you believe are not being recognized by a larger audience?
   Are you a collector, or someone interested in art? What attracts you to certain pieces? Are you attracted to socially critical subjects? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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  If you want to visit this exhibition it is showing at the Kunsthaus, Graz, Austria. It runs from: 22.09.2018 to 27.1.2019
More information is available on the website at: https://www.museum-joanneum.at/kunsthaus-graz/ausstellungen/ausstellungen/events/event/6880/congo-stars