Soapbox Reinvented

FA/VISA 2053M
Complete Work
Zev Farber
March 29th, 2010
Samantha Quinnell


Protest has been previously labeled as the social movements created by angry people, wanting to rebel against the world. This idea is not only not present within the work ‘the Soapbox Reinvented’ but it is purposely put down as a myth created by a closed-minded society. The message within all aspects of the work from ‘Protest to Live’ has been the same since the beginning, perhaps with a bit more emphasis each time. By looking to the past, and taking the focus from the group to the individual, the message reveals protest as a way of life, yet more so, protest as a platform for any citizen of the world to take a stand and be heard.

In the final piece, ‘the Soapbox Reinvented,’ the ideas represent a reconstruction of a line within the origins of protest, with a broader, much more contemporary feel. A new platform is created as a step up from the soapbox and sandwich board, and is presented in an unconventional, yet perhaps an alternatively effective manner. By capturing one in a vulnerable state of the human condition, the ideas and messages behind the photograph become that much more prominent. At a vulnerable state, one becomes emotionally available, and relatable to those viewers interpreting the work. The protest ideas of the past are incorporated, yet the focus becomes the individual within their own home, rather than a public space, and the protest rally, becomes a quest for continual personal gratification, which can then be reflected on the larger scale. By changing yourself, you can change the world.

The layout of the final piece is reminiscent of the past work, as well as past work of other protest artists. The structure is simple, yet remains true to its original intentions. The images have little saturation, eye to eye perspective, and straightforward text. These choices were made to platform the act of protest as one that is available to anyone seeking to take a hold of it. Its information is readily available which creates an accessible market for its viewers. The subject is that of solitude, yet creates a bond with its viewer, and attempts to overturn the conventions of protest as a group movement.

In Kathleen Ritter’s, “Revolt! The Performance Aesthetics of Protest,” she talks about various protest artists and their contributing work. French Philosopher, Julie Kristeva says that ‘revolutions betray revolt, in the psychic sense of the term. Why? Because revolt refers to a state of permanent questioning, of transformation, change, an endless probing of appearances.’ (Ritter, 2) Her approach to the terms revolt and revolution, are chaotic in a sense, by its stab at the common connection that has been created between revolution and revolt, but more then that, they redefine the boundaries one has within the other. Creating a state of permanent questioning is in short terms, an important message that is evident within the original work of ‘the Soapbox Reinvented.’ Redefining the terms as means to create a revolt within itself is the same kind of irony that is presented within the ‘Soapbox’ work. Protesting to create questions rather then chaos, (although chaos in many senses can be good) within a non-public space, is creating a message without an audience, yet in return is fixing that message within the mind of an individual. That individual can then interpret the original message, and expose it to the citizens of their community. This chain of occurrences is the continual questioning of those few original ideas, being passed around through all different walks of people. Eventually those ideas can hit international levels, which was the goal all along.

Protest is the opportunity to stand up, and be heard. That is the definition that has been rewritten through the ‘Soapbox Reinvented.’ With its focus on the individual, it also brings focus to the idea that one person can make a difference, on a grand scale, or simply in their own mind. Protest is a way of life, and is evident within the lives of the majority of the population, perhaps hidden by the myths circulating society. If one questions their own life, their government, or their society, then protest is that question, and a platform is their battleground.






thanks for letting me stand.