In Finding Voice, Kim Berman demonstrates how she was able to use visual arts training in disenfranchised communities as a tool for political and social transformation in South Africa. Using her own fieldwork as a case study, Berman shows how hands-on work in the arts with learners of all ages and backgrounds can contribute to economic stability by developing new skills, as well as enhancing public health and gender justice within communities. Berman’s work, and the community artwork her book documents, present the visual arts as a crucial channel for citizens to find their individual voices and to become agents for change in the arenas of human rights and democracy.

 

Kim S. Berman is Associate Professor in the Department of Visual Art at the University of Johannesburg and the Executive Director of Artist Proof Studio.

 

Berman offers fresh pathways for applying arts education to political discourse throughout the Global South. With expansive goals, Berman examines the remarkable resilience of South African women artists as a telling example of engaging broader debates on the role of local arts in advancing critical theory.

— Africa Today