State of the Art

The Nation State as both Violator and Protector of Human Rights

Sixteen diverse artists come together to explore the theme ‘State of the Art –The nation state as both Violator and Protector of Human Rights’, using the arts to celebrate equality, human rights and diversity. The artists work on a collaborative and interdisciplinary basis to share expertise, experiences, and artistic practice in relation to using their artforms within socially engaged arts practice to promote equality, diversity and human rights. Artists engage in research on national and international best practice examples of arts and human rights from across Europe linked to sociological and anthropological standpoints and a study of ‘art as activism’ from the personal to the political.

Creative outputs for 2021 include artistic research and collaborations, an Arts and Human Rights Networking Day open to the public and a State of the Art Virtual Art Exhibition to be launched for the 2021 Dublin Arts and Human Rights festival (15-24 October 2021) showcasing new artworks on the theme of ‘State of the Art –The nation state as both Violator and Protector of Human Rights’, using the arts to celebrate equality, human rights and diversity. The artworks include visual art, film installation, creative writing and creative responses to key themes capturing learnings and insights gained by artists working on the project to date.

Arts and Human Rights Networking Day 2021

Smashing Times will present an Arts and Human Rights Networking Day for the Dublin Arts and Human Rights festival in 2021 featuring presentations by key artists involved in State of the Art. The artists come together to share learnings and insights gained and the event is open to artists, cultural practitioners, social change movements and communities with an interest in socially engaged arts and human rights practice.

The networking day provides a platform for key artists involved in State of the Art – The Nation State as both Violator and Protector of Human Rights to present their learnings, voices, critical reflections and artistic visions to the wider public in relation to creative engagement within the State of the Art programme. The key presentations are a critical reflection on artistic development and socially engaged arts and human rights practice inspired by collaborative engagement. What artistic processes and ways of working need to be nurtured when working in creative collaboration and solidarity with social movements and communities and how can socially engaged arts and human rights practice navigate the current socio-political circumstances impacting on the world today?

The networking day, which is presented as part of the Smashing Times Artist Development Programme, provides an opportunity to bring together all artists and community and cultural practitioners working in socially engaged arts practice with a focus on the arts and human rights. The aim is to share practice and to exchange ideas in relation to the unique challenges currently being faced by individual and collective arts practitioners. Socially engaged arts and human rights practice is uniquely positioned to partner and build creative alliances with human rights and social change movements and with local communities, opening up newly imagined possibilities and socially engaged alliances in a post pandemic world. What role will artists and cultural practitioners play in this current climate as creators and agents of change? The networking day will be held face-to-face or online.

State of the Art Creative Showcase in digital format

State of the Art is a showcase exhibition of virtual art hosted on the Smashing Times online exhibition hub and via social media including You Tube, Vimeo, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, inspired by State of the Art – The Nation State as both Violator and Protector of Human Rights and celebrating the equality, human rights and diversity. The exhibition is launched for the Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival in 2021 to showcase a sample of artworks – visual art, film installation, creative writing (poetry and short stories) – and responses by artists to key themes alongside research in written and video format. A live panel discussion accompanies the State of the Art showcase exhibition with a live visual installations and performances in partnership with the Chester Beatty Library and the dlr Mill Theatre Dundrum. The artists work collaboratively and independently to create the work for the showcase with communication via telephone, email, zoom, and in person.

Smashing Times are delighted to announce that this project is made possible by grants received from the Arts Council of Ireland and the dlr Arts Office.