Another Aesthetics Is Possible: Arts of Rebellion in the Fourth World War

In Another Aesthetics Is Possible, Jennifer Ponce de León explores how art can be used to create and defend another social reality, focusing on artists and art collectives in Argentina, Mexico, and the United States. She proposes a materialist understanding of art and politics that highlights the power of aesthetics to compose and make visible a world beyond capitalism.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 328 pages
Publication date: 09 April 2021
Publisher: Duke University Press

In her groundbreaking book, "Another Aesthetics Is Possible," Jennifer Ponce de León delves into the profound roles that art can play in the collective endeavor of creating and safeguarding a different social reality. Through a meticulous examination of artists and art collectives in Argentina, Mexico, and the United States, Ponce de León unveils how experimental practices in the visual, literary, and performing arts have been deeply influenced by and intricately articulated with leftist movements and popular uprisings that have vehemently rejected neoliberal capitalism and its oppressive violence. Whether through the creation of an alternate reality game to foster solidarity with Zapatista communities or the utilization of surrealist street theater to amplify the more radical aspects of Argentina's human rights movement, these artists seamlessly blend their artistic praxis with diverse forms of political mobilization, ranging from direct-action tactics to economic resistance. By advancing a novel transnational and transdisciplinary framework of analysis, Ponce de León presents a materialist understanding of art and politics that highlights the immense power of aesthetics to both compose and bring to light a world beyond the confines of capitalism.

In her groundbreaking book, "Another Aesthetics Is Possible," Jennifer Ponce de León delves into the profound roles that art can play in the collective endeavor of creating and safeguarding a different social reality. Through a meticulous examination of artists and art collectives in Argentina, Mexico, and the United States, Ponce de León unveils how experimental practices in the visual, literary, and performing arts have been deeply influenced by and intricately articulated with leftist movements and popular uprisings that have vehemently rejected neoliberal capitalism and its oppressive violence. Whether through the creation of an alternate reality game to foster solidarity with Zapatista communities or the utilization of surrealist street theater to amplify the more radical aspects of Argentina's human rights movement, these artists seamlessly blend their artistic praxis with diverse forms of political mobilization, ranging from direct-action tactics to economic resistance. By advancing a novel transnational and transdisciplinary framework of analysis, Ponce de León presents a materialist understanding of art and politics that highlights the immense power of aesthetics to both compose and bring to light a world beyond the confines of capitalism.

Weight: 502g
Dimension: 152 x 228 x 27 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781478011255