Podcast Live: Arts First – are the arts too politicised?

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The ArtsFirst podcast is an offspring of the Academy of Ideas Arts&Society Forum. Dedicated to defending freedom of expression in the arts and celebrating art for art’s sake, it covers an eclectic range of arts-related topics, from the Paris Olympiad in August 2024 to, more recently, a review of the new V&A East Storehouse and interviews with cancelled artists.

In this special live edition, hosts Wendy Earle and Niall Crowley explore the crisis of freedom of expression in the arts and ask how artists survive – and even prosper – in an age when political activism or ‘artivism’ has proliferated within the arts.

The arts have long been considered a sphere of freedom, with successful artists often thriving on a reputation for pushing boundaries and challenging how we see the world. But as activism has taken hold, artists are increasingly under scrutiny – whether for their work, what they think or even who they associate with. To what extent does this new censoriousness affect artists and how do they deal with it?

Wendy and Niall are joined by writer and journalist Joan Smith, cultural historian Dr Tiffany Jenkins, dancer Rosie Kay and New Culture Forum Literary Festival director, Philip Kiszeley to reflect on this challenging new climate for artistic production. How has been the impact of activism varied across different spheres of art? How has cancellation – or the threat of cancellation – affected their work, careers and lives? How should artists remake the case for artistic freedom?

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