Media Arts in Action

"An Inconvenient Truth" is a 2006 American documentary film directed by Davis Guggenheim about former vice president of the United States Al Gore's campaign to educate people about global warming.

Photography. Film. Animation. Digital Art. Creativity That Shapes Perspectives.

Visual artists harness media arts to illuminate truth, challenge injustice, and foster dialogue. How will you use your craft today?

If you are an artist working in photography, film, animation, and new media technologies, here are ways you can harness your talent to create significant social change and foster community awareness:

  • Raise Awareness: Visual storytelling makes issues undeniable. Whether through photography, film, or animation, artists capture moments that expose injustice, amplify voices, and make social struggles impossible to ignore.
  • Advocate and Activate: Art provokes action. Use your medium to critique unjust systems, highlight human rights violations, and challenge audiences to confront the realities behind political narratives. Powerful imagery shifts perspectives.
  • Engage the Community: Stories deepen connection. Collaborate with local communities to create works that reflect shared experiences and cultural identities. When art emerges from lived realities, it builds trust and fosters collective action.
  • Educate and Empower: Creativity strengthens movements. Whether launching workshops, leading collaborative projects, or mentoring emerging artists, media arts offer tools for self-expression, cultural preservation, and advocacy.
  • Deploy New Media: Reach extends beyond galleries and theaters. Social media campaigns, digital installations, and web-based storytelling bring activism into everyday spaces, engaging audiences globally in conversations that matter.

Raise Awareness

In the 1860s, Carleton E. Watkins' photographs of Yosemite Valley were instrumental in raising awareness about the natural beauty of the area. They also inspired President Abraham Lincoln to lay the groundwork for the U.S. national park system.

Advocate and Activate

The 2014 movie "Selma," directed by Ava DuVernay, was more than just a historical drama. The Academy Award-nominated film was a wake-up call about the ongoing struggle for civil rights. It also became a rallying cry for viewers to become agents of change.

Engage the Community

In 2011, French-artist JR launched the Inside Out Project, helping communities take actions around a range of topics, including diversity, community, feminism, racism, climate change, education, children’s rights and art.

Educate and Empower

The Walt Disney Family Museum Animation Academy supports marginalized individuals and communities by providing comprehensive training in art, animation and storytelling. Instructors frequently travel to schools in poor districts to provide on-campus instruction to students.

Deploy New Media

Laurie Anderson is a musician, composer, filmmaker, author and media artist. Her thought-provoking narratives often include social commentary, inviting viewers to reflect on the intersections of technology, culture, and the human experience.

Huỳnh Công Út, known professionally as Nick Ut, is a Vietnamese-American photographer who won the Pulitzer Prize for his 1972 photograph "The Terror of War." Depicting children running away from a napalm bombing attack, many believe this image changed the course of the Vietnam War.

Huỳnh Công Út, known professionally as Nick Ut, is a Vietnamese-American photographer who won the Pulitzer Prize for his 1972 photograph "The Terror of War." Many believe that the image of children fleeing a napalm bombing attack helped change the course of the Vietnam War. As of May 16, 2025, however, and based on this documentary film, Nick Ut may not be the author of the photo.

Morgan Spurlock directed and starred in the 2004 American documentary film "Super Size Me"
Rafael Lozano-Hemmer's "Pulse Index" is an interactive installation that records participants’ fingerprints at the same time as it detects their heart rates. Photo by: Cathy Carver.

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer's "Pulse Index" is an interactive installation that explores themes of surveillance by recording participants’ fingerprints at the same time it detects their heart rates. Photo by Cathy Carver.

Are you aware of a media artist who is mobilizing meaningful change in the world with their art form?