Something that really jumped out at me was the development of Constructivism. It's really interesting that constructivism developed in 1913, only four years before the Russian revolution which resulted in the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks seizing power and the rise of the RSDLP and the eventual creation of the USSR and the rise of communism in Russia. I think it's fascinating that right before all of this happened, Russians started experimenting with art that served a purpose thereby following the ideals of Soviet Union. However it also made me think about propaganda and how some propaganda (zines, posters, etc.) could also technically be viewed community engaged art but we choose not to see it that way because, in most peoples' minds, propaganda is bad. The theatre group mentioned in the slideshow, Blue Blouse, is widely considered to have been a propaganda devise. I was also struck my the Anti-War Movements section in regards to propaganda. Personally, I usually don't view work that is anti-war as propaganda because I am anti-war. But I realised when going through this slide-show that it is propaganda even if I agree with it. So a question that emerged for me was what is the difference between community-engaged art or political art and propaganda? Is it perspective or is it a tangible thing? This same question also changed my understanding of community-based arts because in my mind using art to engage with communities, incite political/social change, etc. is a positive thing and should be done. But that's because most of the community-based art I interact with is in agreement with my political views. This slide-show really made me think about perspective in art and how the meaning, intentions, and connotations with art change based on a person's individual opinions.
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