President as Muse

Ever since his February 2007 speech announcing his run for the White House, president-elect Barack Obama has inspired the voices of communities, youth participation in politics, and more relevant to this blog: the world of art.

I haven’t been able to go a day in the past few months without seeing Obama shirts in patriotic and Rastafarian palettes or politics-meet-quirk buttons on everyone from toddlers at Berkeley Bowl to librarians on the Cal campus. The former senator’s message about hope and change has inspired art competitions, street graffiti, and even gallery soirées. In late July, more than 200 people donated at least $5 each to attend a six-gallery show in San Francisco called “Art for Obama,” a fundraiser similar to others that took place in Los Angeles, D.C., New York, and Portland.

This fusion of the art and political worlds underlines a motivation behind many contemporary artists: intellectual and artistic change can translate into political change. Sure, Obama would have won the race regardless of his loyal T-shirt wearers. But the Obama art movement is more than a grassroots guerrilla form of campaigning: it symbolizes a strong movement towards patriotism, a notion foreign to most of my peers. The posters, wall paintings, totes, hats, and tees serve as opportunities to flaunt our interest, concern, and pride in a new political era.

Minh-Khue

For more Obama art, visit obamaartreport.com, a blog edited by Bay Area resident, Ken Harman Hashimoto.