Art is subversive.
In response to the social, political, and cultural turmoil of our age we approach this year’s edition as a manifesto. We make a statement on art’s role and responsibility to society, and propose a methodology for employing it against the forces that divide, polarize and dehumanize us.
The creative process is a political act.
In the fight against the forces that strive to separate and alienate us, art must become a catalyst. It must conceive new bonds and possibilities, offer alternative futures, and act as an antidote for cynicism and hopelessness.
Knowledge is power.
The de-institutionalization of creativity is an essential act in developing autonomous, self-sufficient communities. By sharing skills and methodologies we open dialogues, cultivate understanding, inspire and empower ourselves and those around us, creating an environment for collaboration and acceptance.
Art creates space.
In its deeply unquantifiable nature, art has the distinct ability of creating alternative realities and moving what cannot be moved in any other way. Art must challenge people’s perceptions, ideas, and understanding of the world around them.
Art must move us in our primordial ooze.
In an increasingly technocratic society, art must combat and destroy the anesthetizing of human emotion and feeling. It must remind us that we exist; that we live and breathe and feel. Art must move what has become afraid of moving and make us rumble in our core.