Azlan McLennan

Azlan McLennan
Born	1975 (age 41–42) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Nationality	Australian
Education	Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne.
Known for	Visual art
Movement	Anti-art, Political satire

Azlan McLennan (born 1975 in the United States) is a visual artist and socialist activist based in Melbourne, Australia. He is a graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts. His art is known for its political content and has been the subject of considerable debate and media attention in Australia.

Conceptually, McLennan's work tends to be unambiguous and antagonistic from a left-wing perspective, loosely following the traditions of agitprop, anti-art and Institutional Critique, incorporating elements of détournement, readymade or installation. His works have often been characterised as controversial by conservative politicians, journalists and art critics, usually portraying the artist in a negative light. Alternatively, various liberal lawyers, academics and activists have defended his works, usually on the basis of free speech, due to the offence sometimes caused by his art for its often overt left-leaning bias. The artist has expressed public criticisms over Zionism, the War on Terror, Australian nationalism and racism, the mandatory detention of asylum seekers, various political figures and the managerial class of the art world.

McLennan has cited the artists John Heartfield and Leon Kuhn as influences. He has work in collections of the National Gallery of Australia and the National Library of Australia.

...
Wikipedia