ABSTRACT
The backlash against feminism presumes a stable field of gender politics and ignores the multiple interventions made by post-structuralist and queer theorists in crafting a new, politically dynamic, field of gender critique. In a painting of Pussy Riot, Berlin-based artist Kerstin Drechsel captures the queerness of our moment of riot and revolt. The example of Pussy Riot gives rise to the question of what new aesthetic forms accompany these suddenly highly visible manifestations of political exhaustion and outrage. Art and activism even among participatory artists, remain fairly distinct endeavors and are not at all engaging the same modes of speech, action or intervention. There are several reasons why people turn away from anarchy as a political project even when the state is inadequate and corrupt. The paintings of messy interiors taunt the collector and liken the collecting of art to the collecting of things, useless things, and stuff.
