Art for a New World
Art at the Oasis: Reflections on Art, Education and Culture in Muscat, Oman
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session James Johnson Perkins
This paper will explore aspects of Teaching and Art Culture in Oman, which relate to a Head of Fine Art Department’s experiences of living there in 2011-12. It will be explore research into the art establishment in Muscat, Oman and the educational set up, regarding "art" at The Scientific College of Design. It will look at the practical application of art education in this Middle-Eastern country and how students view the art world in this particular region. It will detail the outcomes of this research. Looking at the problems that had be overcame and it will explore the strengths and weaknesses of the educational thinking and educational processes here. It will also look at the implications of these findings and how they may relate to society at large.
UNESCO and the Making of Urban Cultures
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Deborah Stevenson
The arts operate within a nexus of cultural policies, those of local and national governments historically being the most influential. Increasingly, though, supra-state bodies, including the European Union (EU) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), have also been active in developing programmes and funding initiatives intended to support local and national cultural activity. As part of a major research study examining the role of UNESCO as a global cultural policy operative (particularly through programmes associated with the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions), this paper examines the place of the city in this transnational agenda. In particular, the paper explores and analyses the ways in which recent city-focused arts and cultural initiatives of the Convention coincide with, and diverge from, the concerns of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network. As part of this consideration, the paper traces and interrogates key priorities and assumptions, including those associated with digital arts, freedom of expression and the governance of culture. It also highlights the ways in which support for arts and creativity is entangled in the tension between city imaging and sustainable development.
The Politics of Affect and the Unconventional Portrait of the President of the People
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Paula Horta
Three years into his presidency, Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has mostly enjoyed, in contrast to his predecessor, very high public approval ratings. This is owed to his charismatic personality, his conciliatory role in government and people-centered governance. Emotions have played a crucial role in his politics, and he relishes sharing a laugh, dispensing hugs and kisses or taking what has become known as Marcelfies with anyone who approaches him in the street or at public functions. He has played an important role in moments of crises and, for many, he has become “the president of the people”. Notwithstanding the thousands of photos that have been taken of and with Rebelo de Sousa, this paper considers how Rebelo de Sousa’s humane public persona has been depicted on canvas. In particular, it examines António Bessa’s (2017) presidential portrait of Rebelo de Sousa and compares it to Kehinde Wiley’s (2018) official portrait of Barack Obama. Drawing on the theory of portraiture, as well as (un)conventional presidential imagery, it considers’ these artists’ choices, questioning what their depictions seek to reveal not only about the Presidents’ characters and lives but also about both the socio-historical moment in which they were captured and the types of engagement they elicit.
