Argentina Arde: Art as a tool for social struggle

This study focuses on artistic representations of the Argentine crisis of 2002, as produced by the art collective Argentina Arde. The photographic, documentary video, performance works and texts produced by Argentine Arde give an indication of the ways in which the 'nation' is being envisioned by new social movements in Argentina. This study provides insight into their strategic use of nationalist discourse in organizing and mobilizing various sectors of the population. I look into the role played by Argentina Arde within the resistance movements that surfaced as a result of the national crisis, and by extension, the role played by the artists' politico-cultural production itself in counteracting hegemonic discourses of the state and the mass media channels it controls. Through this study I argue that groups of this kind may have great significance for the expression and proposal of alternative solutions to national problems in Argentina and Latin America.