On the Contrary: Rethinking Engaged Art in an Age of Social Unrest is a collection of essays that re-evaluate key artistic concepts that influence the manner in which engaged practices are conducted. Historically produced ideas about, for example, spectatorship, autonomy, what an artwork is, and the political role of the artist determine to a large degree how contemporary practices constitute themselves. Might these concepts be faulty when acted out in practices that occupy fundamentally different premises – to put it bluntly – than producing a painting to be hanged on a wall? The answer is ‘yes’, hence they need both analytic and rhetorical confrontation.

In this thought-stimulating book, author and artist Eef Veldkamp takes the reader in what gathers as a philosophically guided tour through engaged practices and theories within the arts. Premises and assumptions to practice encountered on a day-to-day basis as well as abstract discourse alternate throughout the book, and offer alliance and theoretical support to readers who want more than to ‘just’ make art.