Date of Award

8-2025

Degree Type

Creative Project

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

History

Committee Chair(s)

Lawrence Culver (Committee Chair)

Committee

Lawrence Culver

Committee

James Sanders

Committee

Marissa Vigneault

Abstract

In the late 1960s, many people called for radical, immediate change to America’s political, societal, and cultural structures. The artistic practices of the time reflected the social and political realities of the moment and played a crucial role in advocating for change. The title of the 1968 S.M.S. (Shit Must Stop) subscription art portfolios was a bold and urgent call for action, challenging artists and audiences alike to confront the pressing injustices of the era and inspire a collective awakening to the necessity of transformative change across the United States. Despite a fifty-six-year gap, today we are still fighting the same social and political battles that influenced many of the artists included in the S.M.S. art portfolios. This collection of six portfolios serves as a compelling visual reflection of the socio-political dynamics of the late 1960s, capturing the era's tensions, ideologies, and cultural shifts through the artists’ innovative use of form, content, media, and display.

Comments

The digital exhibit, Challenging the Gaze: A Feminist Interpretation of the S.M.S. Mail Art Collection can be found here: https://arcg.is/0TyD990

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