ARRT’s Puppets of Protest: Communal Art as Activism

Join the art activists of ARRT (Artists Respond and Resist Together) in Santa Cruz, California on their  journey to create a troupe of giant puppets to amplify protest voices on the streets as people gather in ever larger numbers to resist this current administration. Their adventure involved five teams, six months of work, mishaps, a bit of mayhem and, most of all,  joyous creation. KSQD joined them all along the way to reveal how working in community inspires our capacity to respond and resist resiliently.  With a society that profits from you, being stuck on devices, giving your attention to art is a rebellious act. Artistic activism combines the creative power of the arts to move us emotionally with the strategic planning of activism necessary to bring about social change. It is a beautiful marriage of opposites, and this story is all about it.  Even though the creation story for these puppets has reached the end, ARRT’s work is not done, They always have new projects on the horizon. The puppet teams still help in refining many details and there is always room for more handlers for staging the them at future protests. They would like to welcome you to the troop, and if you feel inspired to join the team for this or future art activism please contact Myra Eastman below.  JOIN ARRT! Write to: [email protected]    Feeling overwhelmed and discouraged about our present political reality?  Don’t believe you can make an impact? Then, join Christine Barrington for the The Apocalyptic Supperclub where she serves up stories to uplift and nourish your inner citizen. Every second Friday at 5pm on the Squid.  Visit Apocalypticsupperclub.com for inspiring resources and links to all our shows.