Is It Possible to Not Be on the Frontline as an Artist?

Salzburg Global Fellow Francesco Grech reflects on artists on the frontline and how their work shapes communities and challenges societal barriers

Francesco Grech

After my first Salzburg Global Seminar session, I would say no. Everyone has a frontline. Be it physical or metaphorical. Frontlines exist everywhere and artists are at the very front. From ongoing wars around the world to ongoing cultural tensions between countries and communities within the same country, artists are usually the voice of the voiceless that help communities grow into a better, more functional and just society.

Really and truly, it’s all about growth. Both from the artists’ perspective and the community’s perspective. The artist feeds from the community and vice versa. Artists facilitate societal growth, because usually they tend to have a vision for it. What does this mean? It means artists are able to communicate and shape society in a way no other politician or community leader can. Their art is powerful and it’s no wonder that many artists still risk their very life to pursue their artistic practice.

Does this mean that there is a saviour complex hidden somewhere? Maybe. I have thought a lot about this. In a world where populism and the right are threatening to reshape our democracies, where countries are still ruled by tyrants and dictators, artists find themselves as guardians of good and justice. It is no wonder that artists feel a huge weight on their shoulders. The responsibility is overwhelming and the danger is real. Too real unfortunately. Artists around the world are still killed, imprisoned and exiled to this very day.

Artists feel the world around them in a very particular and unique way. It helps them transform their art into groundbreaking work which in turn shape the future of the community in which they work. This is seen as dangerous by individuals or pockets in our community who have no interest in the common good.

Art is a weapon. Artists break glass ceilings constantly. It is innate in the art itself to break barriers. To challenge. To question. To motivate. To encourage. To show. To protest. To teach. To lead. Will artists save the world? Probably not. But they sure have all the right tools to make it better for every living being.

And this, I believe, is the beauty of artists and their art. Bringing change.

On the Front Line: Artists at Risk, Artists Who Risk occurred between March 25 and 30, 2023. Salzburg Global Seminar convened a global group of 50 participants on the front lines of driving creative, courageous, and ethical change worldwide. Read more online: salzburgglobal.org/go/799-01

Principles And Definitions

A Definition of “Political Art”: Art functions socially in many ways, one of which is to challenge structures of power, repression, uplift democratic participation, heal the communities in which it operates, and facilitate independent critical thinking.

Art that functions in this way—whether explicitly or implicitly, intentionally or unintentionally—we term “political art.” We assert that it plays a critical role in a healthy civil society.

A Definition of “Artists at Risk”: We call attention to risks faced by the makers of political art. For example, artists’ work may be sanctioned, censored, or banned; the makers may be defunded, denied a platform, restricted, surveilled, abused, silenced, imprisoned, tortured, killed, forcibly exiled, or their lives and work may become so constricted as to force self-exile.

These risks, which can be imposed by state actors and non-state actors, private individuals, and the artistic communities themselves, can place the makers of political art in circumstances where they become “artists at risk.”

While certainly, artists face all manner of risks, we use the term “artist at risk” in this Statement specifically to indicate these enumerated risks.