Susan Meiselas: From Galleries to Graffiti Report (Assessment)

Works of Susan Meiselas

One of the artists active today whose work revolves around labor issues is Susan Meiselas. She has received an education in Sarah Lawrence College and Harvard University (“Info”, n.d.). The artist works in different parts of America, specifically, her work related to the labor issue was shot in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The city’s “rich manufacturing heritage” was the focal point in the decision of the theme for the photographs (Fidler, 2015, para. 10).

The photographs were taken as a part of the project for the company that Meiselas works for, Magnum Photos (Byrnes, 2014). They were further used in exhibitions and for the creation of postcards, produced by the company. Therefore, it can be concluded that the photographer had received a payment of some sort for the pictures. In addition, the biography of Susan Meiselas states that she works as a freelance photographer on the various project (“Info”, n.d.). Additionally, she publishes monographs on various social and human rights issues. Meiselas does not receive funding from the government to conduct her work.

The link to the picture taken by Meiselas.

The specific picture is related to the labor as it showcases the wealth and power, created by workers for the business owners (Fidler, 2015). However, the workers in question do not receive much from what they put their effort into. She described the experience as seeing an apparent contradiction between the high buildings (that symbolize wealth) and the conditions of workers who create it (Fidler, 2015). Thus, the vital issue that the artist draws attention to is the treatment that regular employees get in factories and manufacturing facilities. Meiselas focused her work on the modern industry and the way it treats people.

“Market Failure” in Relation to the Works of the Artist

The “market failure” theory in relation to public art funding is focused on the aspect of supporting artists financially and thus helping them create their artworks. The theory argues that the amount of art produced would be significantly lower in case the public would provide monetary support to museums, art galleries, or to the artists directly. It is unarguable that the best artists create value for the society through their artistic works. However, as Miller (2001) stated, there are theories that emphasize that those artists should be poor. Although this aspect of the artist’s life is arguable, the impact the society would have on the creations would be significant. It is difficult to imagine a possibility in which every single artist can get public funding. Therefore, an infrastructure for choosing those who are worthy would have to be put in place. The aspect would interfere significantly with the creative freedom, shifting the focus of an artist to the topics that can be financially beneficial instead of working on socially essential projects.

Miller (2001) refers to creative infrastructure as a system through which the artist portray their stories. The author emphasizes that the new generation of artists is especially important for the infrastructure. Miller (2001) does not support the public funding of art as “economic interest of the market tends to upset a delicate ecology of innovation” (p. 139). The art should carry a higher value in regards to vital issues of the society, thus when connecting it to public funding, it becomes vulnerable due to various aspects. Firstly, the interest of the community in the art will determine the importance of artists. Secondly, in case the society will not be interested in art at all – the creators will have no money to support themselves. Finally, in challenging economic times art can be regarded as an unnecessary luxury, thus the findings can be cut.

References

Byrnes, M. (2014). Milwaukee gets the Magnum Photos treatment in a new exhibit.Citylab. Web.

Info. (n.d.). Susan Meiselas. Web.

Fidler, M. (2015). Ten photographers focus on inequality – a visual story. The Guardian. Web.

Miller, B. (2001). Red goods, white gods. In S. McKay & A. J. Paterson (Eds.), Money value art: State funding, free markets, big pictures (p. 139). Toronto, Canada: YYZBOOKS.