(SESA2) Theme of War, Conflict, and Resistance in Art

Theme of War, Conflict, and Resistance in Art

Throughout history, groups and individuals have sought not only to maintain control over their own lives, but also to assert their power over the lives of others. Visual art has played an important role in documenting such conflict and resistance. It also has served as a means for expressing personal views on politics, war, social inequities, and the human condition.

War, of course, is a subject that arouses intense emotion. In the ancient and early modern world, when art tended to be controlled by an elite ruling class, most images of war were about the glorification of the victor. But as artists gained the ability to work on subjects of their own choosing and art was made more accessible to the masses, "anti-war" images that focused on the darker side of armed conflict became a genre in their own right.

Art has long been a forum for expressing opinions about the state of politics and society. Through caricature, satire, symbolism, and allegory, artists have commented both explicitly and subversively on everything from vanity and excess to corruption and greed, and poked fun at everyone from the anonymous masses to the privileged elite. Often widely disseminated through prints and other reproducible media, the ability of such images to strike a meaningful chord and leave a lasting impression has at times made political satire dangerous terrain for artists, especially those living under the governance of repressive regimes.

Questions for Thought

  • What makes art an effective form of social or political protest?
  • What are the similarities and differences between a glorified battle scene and one that shows the horrors of war?
  • Invading armies have destroyed the art of the people they vanquished, or new regimes have destroyed art associated with their predecessors. What makes art images so powerful? Who ascribes the power to them?
  • How do such images of conflict and resistance speak to a universal audience?
  • At different points in history, and in different cultures or societies, governments have banned certain works of art because they were deemed unpatriotic or subversive. What role, if any, should the government play in defining what art is, how art can be made, who can make it, or the places and manner in which it is displayed?

The College Board has used this theme on the AP Art History exam over the years. This review component has been designed to help you explore this theme. In the earlier modules, you were introduced to several works that use writing as part of the artwork. The following list is just a few examples.

In this module, a few of the works that are good examples of representations of war, conflict, and resistance are the following:

  • Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace . Kamakura Period, Japan. c. 1250-1300 C.E. Handscroll (ink and color on paper).
  • Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan . Artist unknown; based on an oil painting by Liu Chunhua. c. 1969 C.E. Color lithograph.

The following images from the past modules are a few of the possible examples of the artistic representation of war, conflict, and resistance:

  • Palette of King Narmer. Predynastic Egypt. c. 3000-2920 B.C.E. Greywacke.
  • Standard of Ur from the Royal Tombs at Ur (modern Tell el-Muqayyar, Iraq). Sumerian. c. 2600-2400 B.C.E. Wood inlaid with shell, lapis lazuli, and red limestone.
  • Niobides Krater. Anonymous vase painter of Classical Greece known as the Niobid Painter. c. 460-450 B.C.E. Clay, red-figure technique (white highlights).
  • Great Altar of Zeus and Athena at Pergamon. Asia Minor (present-day Turkey). Hellenistic Greek. c. 175 B.C.E. Marble (architecture and sculpture).
  • Alexander Mosaic, from the House of Faun, Pompeii. Republican Roman. c. 100B.C.E. Mosaic.
  • Column of Trajan. Forum of Trajan. Rome, Italy. Apollodorus of Damascus.
  • Ludovisi Battle Sarcophagus. Late Imperial Roman. c. 250 C.E. Marble.
  • Bayeux Tapestry . Romanesque Europe (English or Norman). c. 1066-1080 C.E. Embroidery on linen.
  • Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and hunting scene. Circle of the González Family. c. 1697-1701 C.E. Tempera and resin on wood, shell inlay.
  • The Oath of the Horatii. Jacques-Louis David. 1784 C.E. Oil on canvas.
  • Y no hai remedio (And There's Nothing to Be Done ), from Los Desastres de la Guerra (The Disasters of War), plate 15. Francisco de Goya. 1810-1823 C.E. (published 1863). Etching, drypoint, burin, and burnishing.
  • Liberty Leading the People. Eugène Delacroix. 1830 C.E. Oil on canvas.
  • The Burghers of Calais. Auguste Rodin. 1884-1895 C.E. Bronze.
  • Templo Mayor (Main Temple). Tenochtitlan (modern Mexico City, Mexico) volcanic stone (The Coyolxauhqui Stone).
  • Terracotta warriors from mausoleum of the first Qin emperor of China. Qin Dynasty. c. 221-209 B.C.E. Painted terra cotta.

Images from the text that should not be overlooked:

  • Battle of San Romano. Paolo Uccello. 1435- 1360 C.E.
  • The Third of May 1808. Francisco Goya. 1814 C.E. Oil on Canvas.
  • The Survivors.   Kathe Kollwitz. 1923 C.E.   Lithograph.
  • Guernica. Pablo Picasso. 1937 C.E. Oil on Canvas. Egg tempera on wood.

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