Art activism is the practice of vigorous action as a means of creating political or personal goals by use of art. The type of activists practicing now varies greatly, from street artists to conceptual sculptors. Regardless of the medium, everyone has a common purpose for his or her work—attempting to create awareness and change. Embracing the creative nature of humans, artists send messages using visual content; forcing viewers to not only look but also feel the passion within them. The movement of advocacy is considered a phenomenon throughout the 21st century—demonstrating that your voice can be heard around the world if you shout loud enough.

Conditional to the period in history, the description for art activism has been constantly evolving. Art activists first gained attention in the early 20’s when World War I began. Notable painters and sculptors from around the world came together to protest against the bourgeois ideologies they believed led to war. Referred to now as the Dadaist Movement, artists organized public gatherings, demonstrations, and publication of art and literary journals to protest the 'reason' and 'logic' of their conservative capitalist society. Marcel Duchamp—a popular multi-media artist, initiated one of the more infamous stories of his time when he submitted a store bought urinal, Fountain, to a annual high-society exhibition for the Society of Independent Artists. Because all artists were commissioned by the society, there was no jury for the work submitted, so it was considered appalling when the show committee insisted that Fountain was not art, and rejected it from the show. Duchamp had hoped for this reaction; only further confirming his objection the ideologies of society. Although Fountain was never displayed, the orthodox subjectivity of the art world in that era lives in infamy.

Looking back on Dadaism now, most would