Kara Walker, Jim Jarmusch, and Nan Goldin Are Among the Hundreds of Cultural Figures Endorsing Bernie Sanders for US President

Nan Goldin, Hito Steyerl, and
Kara Walker are among 665 artists and other cultural figures who
are publicly endorsing Bernie Sanders for president in a
new open
letter.

The letter was produced by
Artists4Bernie, a campaign founded by artist Mohammed Salemy,
curator-writer Jennifer Teets, and the collective
DIS. Among its
signatories are dozens of notable art world names, including Ed
Atkins, Kevin Beasley, Hannah Black, Parker Ito, Jon Rafman, Rachel
Rose, Jacolby Satterwhite, Wu Tsang, Amalia Ulman, Chloe Wise, and
Anicka Yi. They’re joined by high-profile cultural figures like
filmmaker Jim Jarmusch, musician M.I.A., and fashion designers Mike
Eckhaus and Zoe Latta. (Artnet News’s art critic Ben Davis is also
a signatory.)

“We believe that a Sanders
presidency will provide a serious and tangible chance for a
redirection of the United States and perhaps the entire world from
the wrong paths that have been followed for far too long,” the
letter reads. “President Sanders will inaugurate a new era for
America: one of peace, prosperity, and essential human
dignity.”  

It’s not hard to imagine why the
Vermont senator has garnered so much support in the art world. His
proposed policies, such as free public college and Medicare For All
would be a big boon for American art professionals, who often work
as freelancers and are saddled with pricy student debt. As mayor of
Burlington in the 1980s, Sanders was a proponent of supporting the
arts through municipal funds, hoping to make Vermont town
“one of the most
livable cities for the arts.” And, during his 2016 presidential bid,
Sanders promised to be an “arts president,” promising to “advocate
strongly for robust funding of the arts in our cities, schools, and
public spaces. Art is speech. Art is what life is
about.”

The late entry of former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg,
who has donated hundreds of
millions of dollars to arts organizations and saw the
city become the largest single funder of arts and culture in
the US under his watch, did not seem to impact the art world’s
loyalty to Sanders.

“Overall, we strongly feel that only Sanders represents the
values and virtues which all of us as cultural producers have
always hoped to strive for,” the letter reads. “President Sanders
will inaugurate a new era for America: one of peace, prosperity,
and essential human dignity.”

Read the full Artists4Bernie
letter here.

The post Kara Walker, Jim Jarmusch, and Nan Goldin Are Among
the Hundreds of Cultural Figures Endorsing Bernie Sanders for US
President appeared first on artnet News.