In the past, whenever there have been crises, artists have raised awareness through their work, and social commentary often is most poignant when delivered through an artform.
In the time leading up to great social upheaval, for example the 1st and second world wars, in the time leading up to the great depression, and generally in times of social unrest, artists have played a fundamental role in pointing out the contradictions, tensions, juxtapositions and sheer madness of the human condition.
These images below are circulating via email just now, and to me these are harbingers of the social upheaval we are facing due to the economic downturn: Car manufacturers are running out of space to store all their unsold cars.
Nissan has announced plans to cut its Sunderland workforce by 1,200. Thousands of unsold cars are stored around the factory’s test track
Honda is halting production at its Swindon plant in April and May, extending the two-month closure announced before Christmas to four months. Honda and Japanese rival Toyota are both cutting production in Japan and elsewhere. Pictured, Hondas await export at a pier in Tokyo
Imported cars stored at Sheerness open storage area awaiting delivery to dealers
Newly imported cars fill the 150-acre site at the Toyota distribution centre in Long Beach , California
The build-up of imported cars at the port of Newark , New Jersey
New cars jam the dockside in the port of Valencia in Spain
Peugeot cars await shipment to Italian dealers at the port of Civitavecchia
Unsold cars at Avonmouth Docks near Bristol
With many manufacturers on extended Christmas shutdown, the number of cars rolling off production lines in December fell 47.5% to just 53,823
Thousands of new cars are stored on the runway at the disused Upper Heyford airbase near Bicester, Oxfordshire, on December 18, 2008.
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/84313837/getty-images-news
Posted by JuergenB 
