When the artists are gone, so is the art

A Day with(out) Art on December 1 acknowledges and mourns the passing of those who are infected by AIDS, the disease that has killed close to 750,000 people since the 1980’s.

On December 1, 1989, in response to the tragic loss of so many people due to AIDS and in coordination with the World Health Organization’s AIDS Day, Visual AIDS organized the first A Day with(out) Art holiday.

In the early 90’s more and more artists got involved with the Visual AIDS group. Working with the organization, artists created many projects which can be seen at https://visualaids.org/projects/day-without-art, including

• A Night without Light (the dimming of the New York Skylight)
• The Electric Blanket (a nationwide outdoor slide projection with text and images)
• Positive Actions (an exhibition-competition for a television PSA held at the same time in 3 NYC venues)
• Broadside Project (distribution of copy-right- free text and images by well-known artists targeted to specific audiences)

More than 800 art organizations, museums, and galleries, throughout the US took part in A Day with(out) Art celebration the first year by filling up walls with artworks, producing exhibitions, programs, readings, memorials, rituals, and performances. According to www.visualaids.org, by the mid-90’s A Day with(out) Art attracted more than 8,000 participants throughout the world.

On A Day with(out) Art, people can participate in many ways, including paying tribute to people who have died due to AIDS, promoting art by artists that have died of AIDS like Keith Haring (1958-1990) and David Wojnarowicz (1954-1992), organizing events for AIDS, or continuing to raise awareness for AIDS and how it can be prevented..

Many artists today have AIDS and the art they create will cease to develop if they pass away due to the disease. Once they are gone, there will no longer be new works from them, and as long as AIDS is a threat to the world, it is a threat to the world of art.