Standing Up

Digital creation over any media platform is voicing your opinion on whatever your subject may be. This is civic participation at its best. I feel that whenever we hear the word “civic” we automatically affiliate it with the government. Although this is acceptable and fair for people to do, it is not right. Civic refers to many things such as: public, municipal, community, etc. The public, and our communities are involved in so much more than just politics; we are busy people with lives. We go to school, we shop, we eat, we go out and have fun, we have things that we are interested in. Any digital creation about any subject is automatic civic participation.

To answer the question, “what does the reading lead you to believe about the role of the artist in society?” as directly as possible I believe the following. The artist is there to raise awareness of the issue, and to bring it forth to the general public presenting it in a way that will grab people’s attention and make them stop and think. The artist is the one that takes the story and facts, and presents them in such a way that will make people care about the issue and perhaps even act on it. I believe that without the artist presenting important information in such a way that draws people in the world would be full of uninformed, and even misinformed people. They open people’s eyes and make them see why they need to be involved.

The challenges and rewards of representing others in our work are many, but for me the largest challenge is to do it correctly. Artists often misrepresent whatever it is that they are advocating simply because what they consider to be easy to understand and analyze many people struggle with. Artists and regular everyday people interpret things quite differently. We all see through different eyes, and the difficulty of representing either a group of people or ourselves is to do in such a way that everybody can understand and relate to. The rewards however are great. Often times we may not receive a standing ovation, or public recognition, but the feeling of satisfaction you get when you know people are viewing your work is priceless. You honestly feel like you made a difference, more than not it’s a small difference, but it is still a difference.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EM4vblG6BVQ&ob=av2e