Study Task 2: Library Research: Society and Politics

The image ‘Stop the Arrogance’ by Michael Mabry for the political magazine NOZONE IX could be considered a strong example of creating an illustration that forgoes the obvious purpose of commercial use. It presents a large blue figure with red a white striped trousers (an allusion to the United States of America flag) standing atop a polluted world with its hands above two holstered guns prepared to be drawn. The piece appears to actively argue against the political/capitalist attitudes of the U.S and it's polluting ways thus falling in line with The First Things First Manifesto (1964) which hoped “that our society will tire… and that the prior call on our skills will be worthwhile purposes”.

However this piece appears to perhaps harm the revised First Things First Manifesto (2000) that suggests a revolution of sorts within the artistic community. It proposes “a reversal of priorities” (2000) away from commercial ends. At first it may seem that ‘Stop the Arrogance’ is doing just that, which could be considered good. Yet when you take into account Michael Beirut’s belief that such a reversal of priorities would replace “mass manipulation for commercial ends with mass manipulation for cultural and political ends” (2004) the idea is somewhat sullied. By making a political comment, the piece has become political in itself.

So while the piece may be effectual in making a comment against capitalism and certain governing it develops a new purpose, one of politics - thus becoming a slave to a different purpose.