Poverty

Figure 1. Ancient Egypt, The Famine Stela, bc. 332-31

Poverty has long plagued human society since ancient Egypt. Around the Ptolemaic Kingdom, recorded on The Famine Stela on the Island of Sehel, dated from 332 to 31 BCE, were the inscriptions carved on the rock surface to document a seven-year drought that caused thousands of deaths of Egyptian citizens during which time the river Nile had not flooded the farmlands. Above the forty-two columns of ancient inscriptions, the engraving tells King Djoser’s concern towards the severity of this drought as the kingdom’s sincere worship of God standing in front of his lines of servants and officials. After all, it was believed to be a natural disaster. Still, King Djoser’s insistence on rebuilding the temple of Khnum, known as the god of the source of the Nile, finally ended the seven years of famine towards the end of his reign and is still remarkably remembered today (1).

Figure 2. Gustave Courbet, Stonebreakers, 1849

In the 1760s, a style known as realism emerged during the first industrial revolution – when the West had formed a mature society that allowed the capitalists to exploit the lower classes for their benefit. Artists like Courbet started to collectively depict such oppression of the upper class in one of his most symbolic paintings, Stonebreakers, showing two construction workers breaking up stones for a new road. Courbet portrays the poor living conditions by letting the peasants wear shabby and worn-off clothes. And the absence of their facial expressions further adds a sense of anonymity to their identity. The lack of an aerial view, such as an open sky or an ample open space, could be seen as a metaphor as if they held no future. Quickly when more people from the lower hierarchies came back to sense, more conflicts were created between groups, ultimately ending in a revolution.

Now centuries passed, and when civilization, industrialization, and technology have improved our average life expectancy and quality, poverty remains a systematic issue in parts of our world. Countries such as China continue to exploit the now-called “blue collars” (2) in an excruciating capital stylism that only entrenches social hierarchy more persistently, making poverty harder to alleviate.

Figure 3. El Anatsui, Old Man’s Cloth, 2003

While the rest 6.8 billion of the population has elevated to better living standards, conversely, Africa is home to some of the world's poorest countries, where people struggle to feed themselves daily. As of 2023, according to the Word Bank (3), there will still be as many as 1.2 billion impoverished populations living on less than US$1.25 a day. El Anatsui, one of Nigeria's most renounced contemporary artists, has dedicated his career to connecting global awareness to his continent. In his contemporary artwork, Old Man’s Cloth, he chooses liquor bottles to symbolize the history of the Atlantic slave trade started by the Europeans when alcohol was used as a means of exchange. The glowing light from the copper wire is another representation of the colonization of Britain until the late 1950s in his home country – Modern-day Ghana – which used to be called the gold coast. In Anatsui’s piece, he links how society was in the past to trigger the audience’s reflection on the social structure in modern days.

Ethical Inequalities

Poor social mobility and factors such as colonialism were among the leading causes why racism and gender bias didn’t seem to be under the same spotlight as nowadays until the mid-19th century when the first law protecting women’s marriage property was signed in New York in 1848 (4). In addition, it was not until 1900 that all states gave women the right to own property.

Figure 4. Agostino Brunias, Free Women of Color with Their Children and Servants in a Landscape, 1770–96

The painting Free Women of Color with their Children and Servants in a Landscape would be a perfect example to demonstrate such racial neglect, where the contrast was evident through the position of the light-skinned women in the foreground and dark-skinned people in the back, shadowed by the artificial vignette, as dark as the history of U.S. Slavery. The entire tone has also been deliberately darkened so that only the details of the lighter colored can be seen, including their godly faces, ornate clothing, and jewelry. On the other hand, those with dark skin are left with only their skin tones that once represented the lowest social status, the dress that symbolizes their slavery identities, and nothing else.

Today, major awareness has been brought onto African Americans and women's rights in the US predominately. Many other forms of bias and inequality still impact the communities of immigrants, refugees, and underrepresented minority groups such as Middle East women.

Figure 5. Shirin Neshat, ‘Rebellious Silence’ Women of Allah, 1993-97

Modern artwork Rebellious Silence continues to address these issues. Quite the opposite of the male gaze used extensively by film directors to suggest how audiences should view female characters through the lens of heterosexual men, Iran-born contemporary artist Shirin Neshat ironically adopted the female gaze to stare back at the media industry, expressing her resentment of the commercial practice that objectifies women. The Western has long portrayed Islamic women’s submission to violence and repression in mainstream media, causing a global misperception.  Whereas through Neshat’s lens, she has captured the woman with a rather powerful gaze, evoking a sense of determination not to give in.  And the way the barrel is positioned within the frame not only reflects the war-torn plight in which Islamic women found themselves, but at the same time, it suggests their willingness to protect and sacrifice for their belief, like the texts that encompass her face further speak of Neshat’s honor for the bravery of Islamic women.

“With an inflicted body, I’ve come to be with you.

And on the promised day, we shall rise again.”

– Allegiance with Wakefulness, Tahereh Saffarzadeh

Cultural Conflicts

Even though human civilization has become more inclusive, conflicts continue through discrimination, neglect, retaliation, and many other underlying forms. The fundamentals that led people into disagreements were their different pursuits formed under the influence of the land, language, religion, and belief they grew up surrounded by. Before the 21st century, armed forces were the ultimate reconciliation to conflicts. Nevertheless, it is always essential to ponder history and constantly reflect on how to become a better resolver when facing conflicts of interest, let alone many existing artworks that have already spoken history for us.

Figure 6. Philoxenus of Eretria, Alexander Mosaic, 100 BCE

Alexander Mosaic was a typical example of a collision between two cultures. This art piece shows the two greatest empires at that time, Persian and Greece, fighting against each other. This artwork manifests the details of the battle of Issus, where the two great ancient military leaders Alexander the Great and Darius III, are leading their empires, seeking to conquer each other. The direction that the horses are facing and the equipment scattered on the ground indicate the tragedy of the Persian empire and the victory of the Greek kingdom (5). This is a prime example of Roman art in the Greek Hellenistic style, and the application of mosaic as a medium indicated that this piece was created for a wealthy Roman elite to exhibit their power and taste.     

Figure 7. Diego Velázquez, The Surrender of Breda (La rendición de Breda), c. 1634-1635

Similarly, The Surrender of Breda also depicts the indigenous communities compromising against the invasion of foreign armed threats. The differences in power dynamics between the Spanish conquistadors and the Dutch city of Breda after the Eighty Years’ War are apparent as the officer kneels before the Spanish. So are the overwhelmed look on the locals’ faces and their shabby clothing and rough weapons compared to the Spanish army's spears, armor, and steeds.

Figure 8. Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Trade Canoe: A Western Fantasy, 2015

Just an ocean across the European continent, American Indian artist Jaune Quick-to-See Smith revealed the conflicts between Native Americans and the European conquistadors in her iconic piece Trade Canoe: A Western Fantasy. Smith refers to the brutality imposed on the Indians by the Western conquistadors, for example, by painting a European businessman-looking figure with an eyepatch that only a robber would wear. Many other formations were also painted opposite directions on the same boat representing their unresolved conflicts in the land of America. The rebellious and harsh strokes of red suggest that chaos involving violence and cruelty might have occurred.

Throughout history, many once existed nations have lent a foundation to the now-civilized economies. Undoubtedly, modern civilization couldn’t have evolved without the primitive history of humans fighting by force when faced with conflicts and contradictions. But soon, we learned after globalization that only by understanding and appreciating our differences can we resolve a dispute into a situation that harms no parties on this planet earth as more of us are aware now that the eight billion people are closely tied together.

Revolution

Merging the three fatal issues, when combined simultaneously, poverty, inequalities, and cultural conflicts could lead to a chaotic societal eruption – revolution. That is when the citizens of one group are no longer satisfied with the rule of their current leadership and tend to form a new norm that often, in successful cases, subverts the mode and function of society.

Figure 9. Delacroix, Liberty leading the people, 1830

A famous painting by Delacroix, Liberty Leading the People, could demonstrate all the core elements behind a revolution, such as the French flag consisting of white, blue, and red, symbolizing liberty, fraternity, and equality. A female personification of freedom is also shown in the center, and the bare breast symbolizes ideals of classical Greek and Republican Roman culture ruled under a democratic government, featuring the quality of courage and integrity. Some people are dressed in suits and proletariat shabby clothing, symbolizing the same target that people from all social classes are working towards. In the background of the painting, the building in the smoke is the Cathedral of Notre Dame, which symbolizes the end of the monarchy.

Figure 10. Kara Walker, Darkytown Rebellion, 1969

Unlike Liberty Leading the People or Berlinguer’s funeral, which depicts a more significant revolutionary movement that overthrew the existing government, Darkytown Rebellion shows a revolution in a small town called Darky Town under the considerable context of the abolition of slavery. This installation offers a rebellion in the Southern States of America, where enslaved people fought their enslavers. Walker created a series of art films that aimed to battle against the unfair historical erasure of African Americans. She has also applied silhouettes and psychedelic colors to make the audience more physically involved. That is – the audience themselves would feel as if they were also participating in the rebellion (6).

Figure 11. Funerali di Togliatti, Renato Guttuso, 1972

Togliatti (7), the former leader of Italy’s communist party for 40 years, had such a magnificent funeral as can be indicated through the acrylic on canvas Renato Guttuso. Red is a symbol of communism, as well as features the heroism of Togliatti’s life, who was often considered one of the founders of the Italian Republic; they started by leading a few thousand-people communist parties to expand to 2 million people within three years. Besides the unique red, the remaining painting remained monochromatic, with the black and white characters - colors symbolizing Togliatti's death and well-lived life. While some other significant characters were also included, occupying a larger portion on the left side of the artwork, such as Anna Kuliscioff, a renowned revolutionist who advocated for feminism, and Carlo Levi, a painter, writer, activist, and politician. 

5 Conclusion

As an art review that provides a vision to investigate traces of social issues through artworks of various styles and periods, topics covered in this review, including poverty, ethnic inequalities, cultural conflict, and revolution, have always existed in various forms since the first generation of human civilization. They continue to impact human society today. Nevertheless, they seem inevitable for humans to evolute. Regardless of period and art form, art is undoubtedly capable of triggering our reflection on how we perceive, interpret, and approach ourselves. 

The advance of technological developments has improved our living standards substantially, while education simultaneously allows more people to elevate their awareness, and that the problem such as racism could likely be resolved. There may be one day when different countries are united as a whole, and all races start to appreciate the Community of Human Fate instead of fighting for resources. One day, a civilized society may be formed in every corner of our planet Earth, where all citizens are satisfied with the government that serves their system, and the earth shall be ever peaceful… 

And as human develops toward these, as a society constantly upgrades its structure, artwork will continue to be one of the most optimum approaches that provide us with a view of the evolvement. Numerous paintings, sculptures, architecture, and other art forms will set up a steady background for future generations to observe the past as if it is present to them. In this way, people can improve themselves from the long river of history. 

References

1. Amr Dalsh and Sayed Sheasha, Nadeen Ebrahim, Editing by Ulf Laessing and Raissa Kasolowsky (2020). Ancient inscription reminds modern Egypt of drought risk. Entertainment News Article. reuters.com/article/egypt-nile-history-idINKBN2672VL

2. Waiyee Yip (2021). China steps in to regulate brutal '996' work culture. BBC News Article. bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-58381538

3. R. Andreas Castaneda Auilar, Dean Mitchell Jolliffe, Tony Fujs, Christoph Lakner, Espen Beer Pryde (2019). 85% of Africans live on less than $5.50 per day. World Bank Blog. blogs.worldbank.org/opendata/85-africans-live-less-550-day  

4. Wikipedia contributors. (2023, July 6). Married Women's Property Acts in the United States. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 08:43, July 21, 2023, from en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Married_Women%27s_Property_Acts_in_the_United_States&oldid=1163825362

5. Jessica Mingoia (2023). Alexander Mosaic from the House of the Faun, Pompeii. Essay of Khan Academy AP Course. khanacademy.org/humanities/ancient-art-civilizations/greek-art/hellenistic/a/alexander-mosaic-from-the-house-of-the-faun-pompeii

6. Doris Maria-Reina Bravo (2014). Kara Walker, Darkytown Rebellion. Essay of Khan Academy AP Course. khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/global-contemporary-apah/21st-century-apah/a/kara-walker-darkytown-rebellion

7. Wikipedia contributors. (2023, July 16). Palmiro Togliatti. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 07:16, July 21, 2023, from en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Palmiro_Togliatti&oldid=1165658876