Claire Bishop stated that aesthetics in arts was replaced by ethics, which subsequently means that we judge artistic works only through the prism of its political character. This is well exemplified in Jean Gabriel Periot’s films, which exploit the image of street riots, thereby illustrating the phenomenon of social anger. There is no doubt that while formulating its language, contemporary art increasingly often reaches for strategies worked out by bottom-up anti-capitalistic movements. It can be proved by artists’ works that use the idea of occupation, strike, D.I.Y. or non-cash exchange of goods. Do alternative practices digested by mainstream still have the political edge? During the lecture we will analyse Jean Gabriel Periot’s films and juxtapose them with other works referring to the historical moment of “people taking to the streets”, we will also track strategies of art called “socially engaged”.

Through the courtesy of Jean Gabriel Periot the following films will be screened:
– Les Barbares / The Barbarians, 2010
– We Are Winning Don’t Forget, 2004
– The Delicate Art of the Bludgeon, 2009
– The Devil, 2013