THE ART OF DEMOCRACY NATIONAL COALITION OF MORE THAN FORTY POLITICAL ART EXHIBITIONS,
October 3 to November 25,

The Art of Democracy, a national coalition of artists and venues focused on political and social issues, announces the opening of more than forty concurrent art exhibitions across the country this fall during election
season.

What began some eighteen months ago as an idea to form a loose coalition of politically-oriented print exhibitions in two cities has grown into a national network of art shows. Organized by printmakers Stephen A. Fredericks of New York City and Art Hazelwood of San Francisco, The Art of Democracy will exhibit over one thousand works of art addressing current politics; it will draw hundreds of thousands of viewers during this crucial election season. Perhaps not since the 1936 Artists’ Congress exhibition, “Artists Against War and Fascism,” has a political art movement like this been organized — certainly not since the Vietnam War protests in the 1960s and 1970s. We hope to encourage a national political art movement that will endure beyond this administration and help prevent a recurrence of its usurpations

The still-growing list of cities hosting exhibitions includes Atlanta GA, Baltimore MD, Berkeley CA, Chicago IL, Davis CA, Decatur GA, Farmville VA, Gaguas PR, Joshua Tree CA, Kingston RI, Las Cruces NM, Madison WI, Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN, Milledgeville GA, Milwaukee WI, Monterey CA, Muncie IN, Murray KY, Oakland CA, Oak Park IL, Plymouth NH, Santa Cruz CA, St. Louis MO, Tucson AZ, Tustin CA, Vashon Island WA, and West Barnstable, MA. Of special interest are exhibitions at Loyola University Museum of Art, Chicago IL, the National Arts Club, New York NY, and at Meridian Gallery and other San Francisco CA locations.

Additional details about the venues, exhibition dates and contacts is available on The Art of Democracy website listed below. The coalition is linked together through an umbrella title, a logo designed by renowned opinion-page illustrator Frances Jetter, a website, a coordinated public-relations effort, and an exhibition-poster exchange between participating groups. The exchange of political posters between Art of Democracy venues is an integral element of the coalition’s effort; the posters will be hung in the exhibitions, and also distributed in public spaces in AOD exhibition cities.

The Art of Democracy website http://www.artofdemocracy.org/ lists all shows involved with the coalition, imagery from the shows, as well as exhibition dates, activities, announcements, and links to supporting websites.

Receptions: Friday, October 3 and Friday, November 7, 7 p.m.–10:00 p.m. in conjunction with Oakland Art Murmur First Fridays  (www.oaklandartmurmur.com).