The Aesthetics of Dictatorship

This event took place on Tuesday, March 15, 2022 at 2:30 PM UTC.

Dictatorships frequently use art and culture as propaganda to create cults of personality and maintain legitimacy. The totalitarian aesthetic is familiar to many of us from films and documentaries of the Soviet Union or Nazi Germany: tanks driving down wide boulevards; paintings of toiling workers; military uniforms laden with medals; and films depicting past glories. But for billions of people who continue to live under authoritarian regimes, these images and experiences continue to be a part of everyday life. This panel discussion will explore how dictators co-opt cultural institutions, and use dress, art, film, architecture, and other kinds of visual propaganda to impose their vision of society, instill fear, and reinforce their regimes. Venue: Austin Marriott Downtown, Waller Ballroom ABC Louisa Lim, Peter Pomerantsev, Alexander Sikorski, Krithika Varagur