From stage to street : the transnational production of politically engaged art in post-Soviet Moldova

Abstract

Since the late 1990s, politically engaged art has been flourishing in many post-Soviet states, and more recently artists from the region have gained the attention of Western media. In Moldova, despite the lack of public interest and sometimes government hostility toward politically engaged artists, the production of engaged art continues. Yet, academic studies of this form of political engagement have been extremely limited. This thesis fills this gap and considers political engagement through the arts as an unconventional form of political behaviour. The analysis rests on data collected through semi-structured interviews, life stories, online newspapers, audio-visual material, direct observation of artworks and rehearsals. This research aims to assess Pierre Bourdieu’s social theory applied to the post-Soviet space. The thesis argues that factors such as transnational funding, social capital, cultural capital and migration can contribute to an understanding of political engagement in Moldova. Finally, the thesis uses an interdisciplinary approach incorporating debates from international relations, sociology of art, international political sociology, cultural studies, art history and performance studies.