Any topic (writer’s choice)

For this specific assignment you will be watching an artist lecture by Tania Bruguera which she delivered in August of 2019 at the Monash University Museum of Art in Melbourne, Australia as the Keynote Address of their two day symposium titled Lets Go Outside: Making Art Public. Bruguera is a politically motivated performance artist from Cuba whose work blurs the lines between civic and creative duty to society. She defines herself as an initiator rather than an author and admits that she finds the most productive moment of an art piece is when people are unsure if its art. She works primarily in the public realm and in collaboration with people local to the institutions who host her projects. People, are the key ingredient in all of Brugueras projects, all of which rely on interaction and real human relationships to flourish. Her work is often a touchstone in conversations about social engagement, collaboration and collective practices in the contemporary arts, so I think you’ll find this lecture very relevant to this week’s theme.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please watch Bruguera’s entire lecture (until about 50 minutes in).

Thesis Prompt for Tania Bruguera’s lecture:

How does Tania Burguera use art as a tool for civic engagement in the public realm? Please reflect on specific projects she discussed in her lecture to build your argument.

Write a 300-400 word response to the Artist Lecture content, guided by the Thesis Prompt.
You need to develop a solid and meaningful argument in response to the Thesis Prompt by reflecting on and actively referring to specific content from the Artist Lecture to support your reflections. You are writing abut your own observations, reflections and interpretations of the lecture, NOT simply offering us a summary of what the artist talked about.

video link: https://vimeo.com/365411657