Year Seven of the Monied Spectacle: An Indy Media Guide to ArtPrize

Year seven is upon us. Whether you like it or not, for the next month or so, the spectacle that is ArtPrize, is pretty much all you will hear about. Forget about Donald Trump, Iran or climate change, thousands of people invading downtown Grand Rapids is all that matters.

This is year seven and for seven years we have been writing about ArtPrize. Therefore, it seems fit that for year seven, we provide you with an Indy Media Guide to ArtPrize. However, before we begin, it is worth noting that our ongoing critique of this monied spectacle does acknowledge that there is pleasure, entertainment and benefits to ArtPrize. We do not see the world in some overly simplified binary world of good and bad, but we do want to see a world where those with obscene wealth and power are challenged or at the very least made to feel a bit exposed.

Ultimately, we believe that you cannot separate the funding sources of events like ArtPrize, from the political desires of the capitalist class. The DeVos funding of ArtPrize is a way to distract us and make us feel good for a few weeks out of the year, while the politics they fund bludgeon us all year round.