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The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2026.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2026
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| _version_ | 1867614100541931520 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Vorster, Nicola |
| author2 | Fourie, P. P. |
| author_browse | Fourie, P. P. Vorster, Nicola |
| author_facet | Fourie, P. P. Vorster, Nicola |
| author_sort | Vorster, Nicola |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/135589 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:46:40.081Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/135589 The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism Vorster, Nicola Fourie, P. P. Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Political Science. Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. Vorster, N. 2026. The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism. Unpublished masters thesis. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/e047a3fc-4099-4c06-a4a1-fd76d448926c The use of art vandalism as an instrument for social and political change has gained renewed visibility in recent years. In May 2022, a climate activist disguised as an elderly woman threw cake at the protective glass covering Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa (1503) – an act that sparked at least 54 similar incidents across major art institutions. While this tactic may appear novel within the context of contemporary climate activism, it has deep historical roots, dating back centuries to the Byzantine Empire and, more recently, to the 20th century art movement Dadaism. And yet, despite its recurrence, International Relations (IR) has been slow to identify, describe, and explain the dynamics of this particular mode of protest. Bearing this in mind, this study investigates: (1) whether climate activists’ use of art vandalism as a protest tactic mirror the origins, ideals, and methods of the avant-garde art movement Dadaism; (2) the effectiveness of creative iconoclasm and art vandalism in challenging prevailing societal norms and addressing urgent global issues, such as war and climate change; and (3) whether “Green Theory”, within the broad church of IR theory, accommodates art vandalism. To appropriately answer and address these research questions, the study provides both a conceptual and historical framework to understand iconoclasm and art vandalism, tracing the various motives for such actions. The study defines four key categories of protest strategies – institutional, non-institutional, legal, and illegal methods – and applies a modified version of Turner’s cost-benefit approach to assess the effectiveness of creative iconoclasm and art vandalism as strategies of political resistance. The study then reviews the emergence of Green IR theory and considers its liberal and radical variants. Finally, through a comparative analysis of Dadaists’ and climate activists’ methods, motivations, and articulated goals, the study concludes that (1) climate activists’ use of art vandalism, in certain contexts, mirrors the Dadaists’ origins, ideals, and methods; (2) creative iconoclasm and art vandalism appear to be relatively effective protest tactics within the context of Dadaism and contemporary climate activism; (3) Green Theory – particularly its more radical variants – can and does accommodate art vandalism, especially when such acts are non-violent and aimed at exposing environmental injustices. Masters 2026-04-02T07:13:09Z 2026-04-02T07:13:09Z 2026-03 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/135589 en Stellenbosch University 216 pages application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Vorster, Nicola The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism |
| title | The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism |
| title_full | The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism |
| title_fullStr | The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism |
| title_short | The Art of Disruptive Politics:The relationship between Dadaists' use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists' use of art vandalism |
| title_sort | art of disruptive politics the relationship between dadaists use of creative iconoclasm and climate activists use of art vandalism |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/135589 |
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