Introduction

From Billie Holiday, to Banksy, to Rage Against the Machine, art has always been a tool of protest and societal upheaval. Fighting back against censorship, protest art can inform a population about resistance movements, highlight social injustice, or create a rallying cry to unify a movement. In Art as Protest, we examine protest art in all of its forms, learning how different mediums are used to deliver the artist's message, and teaching our students to reclaim their own voice and message through art.

History & Distinction

A cornerstone of protest art is the act of reclaiming art and culture from the institutions perpetuating the injustices it criticizes. Protest art combats this, pulling out of such institutions to regain their freedom of expression and make their art more accessible to common people. Some artists like Banksy place their works in public places to maximize their reach and freedom (Prakash et al.). Others, like Billie Holiday, use the rigid conventions of their medium to enhance their message (Fields). Our workshop pulls from the most historically relevant mediums applicable to protest movements. There is immense historical and cultural significance in a work of graffiti, especially as a means of defiance. We pull inspiration from the works of Jason Reynolds, Austin Kleon, Jordan Peele, Johnathan Swift, and Billie Holiday, among many others. We consider the prominent anti-war protests of the 60s and 70s, in addition to modern feminist and Black Lives Matter movements and their contributions to our definition of protest art. Our personal innovations lie in our multimedia approach, in our fluctuation between mediums, works, and movements that lend itself to a well-rounded mix of relevant mediums for our students to work with. Consider the various mediums of our student work as you explore the exhibit.

Methods

Our main method of curation was examining literature about protest art and drawing from our personal experience with each medium to determine the best examples of protest art from each medium we discussed. Through lectures and examples we taught the students about the significance and practices of each medium, and through guided discussions students were able to determine what they found most and least effective for each.

Audience & Impact

Our workshop was targeted at college students interested in art activism and aimed to teach students how best to advocate for causes that they care about. Students were encouraged to examine the strengths and weaknesses of various artistic mediums for conveying messages and depicting social injustice, then create their own protest art in each medium. Through this exploration, I have learned about the history of various political moments and how to create art that resonates, gaining a deeper appreciation of protest movements and art activism.

References

Fields, Liz. “The Story behind Billie Holiday’s ‘Strange Fruit.’” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 27 Aug. 2025, www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/the-story-behind-billie-holidays-strange-fruit/17738/.

Hartle, Stephanie, and Darcy White. Visual Activism in the 21st Century: Art, Protest and Resistance in an Uncertain World. Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 2024.

Prakash, Venkat, et al. “Banksy: The Anonymous Street Artist Who Turned Walls into Protest.” 121clicks.Com, 15 Mar. 2026, 121clicks.com/inspirations/banksy-street-art-walls-turn-protest/. 

Acknowledgements

“I’d like to thank my wonderful co-lead Lizzie and our TA Jenna for supporting and challenging me throughout this process, as well as our incredible students for giving me this chance to teach about my passion. I'd also like to thank our program director Harold for making this possible.” - Dean W.

“Thank you to all teaching staff, including Harold, Irene, and Heather. Thank you, additionally, to Jocelyn H. and Mary M., who live with us and suffer the consequences.” - Lizzie C.