Has there ever been a dictatorship that hasn't ****ed up the arts?

[General Ludd]

Oh, and people here should really look up Neo Rauch. I'm not a huge fan of his, but he's a german painter and all his work is about analysing the soviet's emphasis on craftsmanship and combining soviet aesthetics with western conceptualism.


Apparently he's hot **** in the art world right now.

[Nubclear]

We should all try to remember that "art" includes more than merely visual art

[Blaupanzer]

I was thinking of Peron for Argentina, even as I typed Pinochet. He fits the criteria of dictator, and I'm under the impression, possibly false, that some decent artists (authors, musicians) flourished in that era in Argentina.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Comrade Tassadar
We should all try to remember that "art" includes more than merely visual art

yeah but literature thrives more on persecution.

[Nubclear]

When I think of Soviet arts, I think of Soviet music primarily.
And, contrary to popular belief in the West, not all Soviet art was creepy cult-of-personality oppression

[Frozzy]

I cant think of anything meaningful coming out of Thatcher's Britain.

[Blaupanzer]

Originally posted by Frozzy
I cant think of anything meaningful coming out of Thatcher's Britain.

That regime does not fit our criteria. Also didn't the Who record in that era? Chris Rea also did some good recording during that time. Probably others.

[Buck Birdseed]

I shouldn't have posted this query here - apparently there are a bunch of you that think the equivalent of Albert Speer being a greater architect than Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, which is a ****ing scary thought.

Re: Art in Mao's china: Like many dictatorships there were definate rules on what was acceptable. With the single state institutions for each art form dictating "taste", most progress or new ideas were stopped. One example is in music where everything published (through the state publishers) had to have a "traditional" or "folk" element, leading to almost entirely puerile crap being pumped out.

[Nubclear]

leading to almost entirely puerile crap being pumped out.

Westerners are not in a position to criticise, thanks

[The Mad Monk]

All good art comments on life.

...

Sometimes the comment is, "the state has us by the balls"
.