Documenta Fifteen in Kassel, Germany, curated by Ruangrupa, immediately became the world's attention after the boycott of an art installation accused of having anti-Semitic views. Schaap (2011) argues that strict social hierarchies continue to be practiced culturally to suppress and deny the intelligence of small groups who may not have the basic knowledge to understand their world. Meanwhile, Rancière argued that the essence of politics itself is through acts of resistance to the 'police' by providing opportunities for marginalized groups in the intellectual hierarchy to speak. Then, what kind of freedom is ideal to provide space for artists or writers to express their thoughts and ideas? What if their views contradict the values agreed upon by the majority group? In this paper, I will analyze Rancière's thoughts about political aesthetics and the distribution of sensible as a framework to deal with the criticism of the artwork entitled "People's Justice" by Taring Padi which was exhibited at Documenta Fifteen in Kassel, Germany in 2022. Should art have a political commitment? And if so, what is the relationship between politics and aesthetics? Through a qualitative descriptive method, I invite readers to reflect on Rancière's thoughts on understanding an art or artwork, despite the eventual need to reach a dissensus.

Authors:
Hadiansyah Aktsar, University of Groningen, Netherlands

About the Presenter(s)
Mr Hadiansyah Aktsar is a University Postgraduate Student at University of Groningen in Netherlands

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