Unit 2: Conflict and Contradiction in Art

As with every other aspect of human life, conflict has served as a focus for art across cultures and eras. Disputes on all scales—national, personal, internal—have made for the subjects of paintings, monuments, and other art forms. What’s so appealing about conflict and contradiction? Take a closer look at art that has engaged with conflict by striving to document (or glorify) it, meet the artists who use art to challenge the status quo, and learn how some art embodies contradiction as a formal quality.