Reclusive Artist Cady Noland and Photographer Catherine Opie Are Among the 2,200 Creatives Endorsing Elizabeth Warren for US President

Last week, some 650 artists
signed an open letter endorsing Bernie Sanders for president of the
United States, a total which rapidly grew to close to 3,500
signatories. Today, to
coincide with the Super Tuesday primaries, a new
letter signed by over 2,200 artists, writers, and other
creative professionals throws its weight behind the Democratic
primary’s other progressive candidate, senator Elizabeth
Warren.

Dawoud Bey, Deborah Kass Cady
Noland, Catherine Opie, and Mira Schor are among the artists who,
according to letter, “believe Elizabeth Warren embodies the
qualities our country needs most: compassion, respect, integrity,
wisdom, intellectual curiosity, optimism, and the fundamental
understanding that when the least among us does better, we all do
better.”

“Warren understands the
essential role the arts play in the world,” the letter, written by
a coalition called Artists for Warren, adds. “In her words, ‘The
arts help us define our values as individuals and as a people. They
give us insight into human passion and moral strength, into deep
suffering and courageous struggle.’”

The Artists for Warren letter
doesn’t boast the same number of notable names as the Sanders
letter, which—especially during its early stages—read like an art
world phone book. However, because of the nature of grassroots
efforts like these, it would be difficult to draw any strong
conclusions from that initial fact.

Coming into Super Tuesday,
senator Warren had earned eight delegates, trailing Joe Biden, who
has 54, and Bernie Sanders, who leads the pack with 60. Both Pete
Buttigieg (26 delegates) and Senator Amy Klobuchar (7
delegates)—the race’s two other major candidates—suspended their
campaigns in recent days and endorsed Biden, in what has been seen
as an attempt by moderates to regroup and defeat the progressive
insurgency within the party.

Former New York mayor Michael
Bloomberg, a major supporter of the arts through his philanthropy,
will appear on ballots for the first time in today’s 16 primary
elections.

Still, the collective behind
Artists for Warren sounds a confident tone: “Elizabeth Warren’s
administration will reset the emotional climate of the United
States,” reads the group’s letter. “She will foreground social
justice, compassion, integrity and truth. We are excited to see our
country leap forward under her leadership. We believe in her. We
want to live in Elizabeth Warren’s America.”

The post Reclusive Artist Cady Noland and Photographer
Catherine Opie Are Among the 2,200 Creatives Endorsing Elizabeth
Warren for US President appeared first on artnet
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