Work of Art in the World

Doris Sommer is the Ira and Jewell Williams Jr. Professor of Romance Languages and Literatures and of African and African American Studies at Harvard University, where she is Founder and Director of Cultural Agents: Arts and Humanities in Civic Engagement. She is the author of Bilingual Aesthetics: A New Sentimental Education and editor of Cultural Agency in the Americas, both also published by Duke University Press.

• Acknowledgments xvPrologue. Welcome Back 11. From the Top: Government-Sponsored Creativity 152. Press Here: Cultural Acupuncture and Civic Stimulation 493. Art and Accountability 814. Pre-Texts: The Arts Interpret 1075. Play Drive in the Hard Drive: Schiller's Poetics of Politics 135Notes 157Bibliography 193Index 215

“This inspiring book is filled with models, sources, and ideas that can be adapted and adopted to inform teaching and research about activist art and creativity.” - Anna Upchurch (LSE Review of Books) "Its celebration of the difference that art can make in a world that kills what is human in man by preventing people to discover real freedom and to find their way between personal well-being and social and political commitment is a very welcome and timely one." - Jan Baetens (Leonardo Reviews) "Sommer breaks down the barrier between those who create artworks and those who analyze them, between cultural 'producers' and cultural critics, but also the barrier between institutional figures and those excluded from spaces of high art. She calls for socially engaged humanistic studies to encourage imaginative work in both artistic interpretation and creation. . . . Sommer’s book is filled with examples of how to leave the ivory tower and take to the streets."  - Patrícia Vieira (Los Angeles Review of Books) “Pragmatic and purpose-driven, this book speaks directly to the defunding and devaluing of the humanities at all levels and will awaken even those grown weary of calls to action. This book will excite anyone seeking evidence of the successes of collaborative, public humanities initiatives. Buy a copy for your dean. Recommend it for a faculty study group or a community read. Sommer can puncture apathy with hope and motivation to act.” - Robin Becker (Academe) “The book will speak to readers on many levels. Scholars will ponder its philosophical arguments crafted with passion and wit, while artists inclined to social engagement will interpret its urgent call to expand the dialogue about art and political freedom. Sommer achieves a remarkable feat: to surprise artists and citizens anew into being co-creators of new paths to promote beauty and action. No small thing in these trying times." - Pedro Reina Perez (ReVista)