Wendy Halderman

Artists are agents of change. They create new ideas that describe and transform the human experience. To the extent that artists wish to be productive members of a society, they will use their talents toward this end.

The creative process itself, however, owes no responsibility to anyone other than the artist. It is a wholly selfish endeavor where the end product arises from a single individual: one mind, one life. Indeed, the artistic creations valued most highly by a society are often the least influenced by constraints of censorship, groupthink, conscience or law. It is as if the purpose of the artist is to give voice to the unspeakable, the undoable.

Paradoxically, society gives the artist an unspoken yet overt permission to break the rules. Society rebels (and transforms) vicariously through the work and mindset of the artist.

Artists should not take this permission lightly. They have power to inform, direct and influence that which becomes history. Those who control the visual imagery control the society.

Artists can participate responsibly in societal transformation by using their images as agents of progress. Or they can perpetuate the status quo. Either way, the decision should be made with great consideration.