Artificial Hells. Participatory Art and the Politics of Spectatorship

Artificial Hells is the first historical and theoretical overview of socially engaged participatory art. Claire Bishop follows the trajectory of twentieth‑century art and examines key moments in the development of a participatory aesthetic. It concludes with a discussion of long‑term educational projects by contemporary artists such as Thomas Hirschhorn, Tania Bruguera, Pawel Althamer and Paul Chan. Since her controversial essay in Artforum in 2006, Claire Bishop has been one of the few to challenge the political and aesthetic ambitions of participatory art. In Artificial Hells, she not only scrutinizes the emancipatory claims made for these projects, but also provides an alternative to the ethical (rather than artistic) criteria invited by such artworks. Artificial Hells calls for a less prescriptive approach to art and politics, and for more compelling, troubling and bolder forms of participatory art and criticism.