Imagine a Better Future: Art as a Path to Change

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The question, “How can we prevent future wars?” is a broad and complex one, but breaking it down can help make it more approachable. A great starting point is to imagine the future we want to create. What does a peaceful world look like? And how do we work towards it?

The artworks featured here - including Dadaist creations, Jean Marc Côté’s futuristic visions, and the powerful Dreams Go Up in Smoke by Sara in our competition archives - explore themes of transformation, progress, and hope. These pieces remind us that art is not just about reacting to the present; it’s also about imagining new possibilities and inspiring change.

This post delves into how these artistic approaches can guide us in interpreting today’s challenges and envisioning our own futures. Through creativity, we can reimagine a world where peace, collaboration, and innovation take centre stage. 

 

Sara, 16-18, india, dreams go up in smoke [digital illustration], never such innocence archives, london, (photo © never such innocence)

Sara’s Dreams Go Up in Smoke (16–18, India) and Jean-Marc Côté’s futuristic illustrations both explore contrasting visions of the future, using technology to reflect on progress, peace, and humanity’s potential.

In Sara’s poster, a dove, symbolising peace, soars through a bright blue sky, with leaves spelling “dreams” to represent hope and a harmonious future. This peaceful scene sharply contrasts with the darker orange sky, where a plane drops bombs on children expecting relief but instead facing destruction.

The juxtaposition of these scenes—hope versus violence—highlights the gap between humanity’s dream of peace and the harsh realities of war. By using colour and space, Sara amplifies this tension, showing how fragile peace is and critiquing the distorted intentions behind war. The poster leaves a powerful message: while we dream of progress, the reality often falls tragically short.

Suggestion: typography (using writing and font choices in a piece of work) can have many different impacts. How can you design any writing that you might include in your work to have the biggest impact? e.g. Using rounder fonts for uplifting messages vs more more bold sharp fonts to call to action.

 

Jean-Marc Côté’s illustrations, from the early 19th century, on what the year 2000 would look like presents an optimistic and utopian vision of the future, showcasing flying machines, advanced transportation, and harmonious cities. Through vibrant colours and depictions of human ingenuity, his work reflects a belief that science and technology will lead to progress and a better world.

In contrast, Sara’s Dreams Go Up in Smoke critiques current systems, using stark imagery to highlight the fragility of peace and the destruction caused by war. Where Côté’s work envisions technology as a tool to uplift humanity, Sara’s poster warns of its potential for harm.

Despite their differences, both works use their mediums to explore humanity’s future and respond to societal concerns. Côté’s hopeful tone inspires dreams of progress, while Sara’s piece urges vigilance to prevent conflict from overshadowing those dreams. Together, they show how art can shape conversations about the future we want to create.

* Image Caption for Cote's Carousel of work : Côté, J.-M., 1900. ‘En L’An 2000’. Cigarette Illustrations, Commissioned by Armand Gervais for the 1900 World Exhibition in Paris. In Care of the Estate of Christopher Hyde since 1986. Full Collection Linked Below.

 

The whole genre of science fiction is based on the concept of imagining the potential of science, which Côte’s work focused around. Although these works may seem far removed from our reality, many of them are grounded in real-world issues. Exploring the science and ideas behind them can help turn imaginative visions into real possibilities, showing how creativity can inspire change and shape the future.

A similar concept is Futurism, an art movement that began in Italy in 1909 that sought to begin art anew. The movement called to reject the past and celebrate modernity, industry, and technology. Founded by poet Tommaso Marinetti, Futurism grew out of frustration with Italy’s oppressive cultural traditions, offering artists a chance to embrace the promise of progress and innovation. In the Futurist Manifesto, Marinetti asserted that ‘we will free Italy from her innumerable museums which cover her like countless cemeteries’.

 

Severini, G., 1915. Suburban Train Arriving in Paris. painting, Paris: Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.

Gino Severini was a key figure in the Futurism movement. One of Severini’s notable works, Suburban Train Arriving in Paris (1915), captures this spirit of optimism. The train symbolizes speed, connectivity, and progress, arriving in Paris, a hub of multiculturalism and collaboration.

Severini suggests that trains not only transport people but also materials vital for building social infrastructure and rebuilding societies—particularly significant as the piece was created during the First World War. His use of vibrant, intersecting forms like clouds, trees, and buildings conveys energy and creation, emphasizing hope and vitality even amid the chaos of war.

 

Aoyang, 16-18, china,  fire on fire [acrylic and graphite on paper], never such innocence archives, london, (photo © never such innocence)

Fire on Fire by Aoyang (16–18, China) explores the complexity of war. The artwork shows Chinese weapons in a repeating pattern, set against a background that looks like the confusing, endless stairs in M.C. Escher’s art. This creates a sense of disorientation, symbolizing the contrast between the safety of home and the chaos of war. Aoyang’s piece reflects how war can blur the line between everyday life and violence, showing how deeply conflict affects us all. The green colour, reminiscent of rust and oxidation, a decayed state may symbolise the passage of war and hope for disarmament. 

Aoyang acknowledges that “it is undeniable that it can solve some problems” but ultimately concludes that “war brings nothing but misery and instability”. The useless damaged weapons are therefore a sign of the past and the futility of continuing to fight. The piece explores the future by commenting on the past and by declaring weapons, a clear symbol of war and conflict, as redundant. Aoyang seeks to leave war behind and move forward as we should in peacetime.

When comparing Aoyang’s Fire on Fire to Severino’s Trains’ the two pieces reflect different yet complementary messages about technology’s role. While Aoyang warns of the dangers of war and destructive technologies, Severini highlights how innovation can rebuild and improve societies post-conflict. Together, they argue for moving beyond war and embracing technology as a force for positive change.

 

Ailey, 11-14, scotland,  life continues… [paper mache and photographs], never such innocence archives, london, (photo © never such innocence)

Life Continues… by Ailey (11–14, Scotland) features a paper-mâché grenade that transforms a symbol of violence into something fragile and harmless. By using lightweight, delicate paper, Ailey contrasts the grenade’s usual destructive power with a sense of fragility, inviting viewers to reflect on themes of peace and disarmament.  

This transformation suggests a hopeful future where tools of war are rendered obsolete. The handmade, craft-like nature of the piece further emphasizes care and creativity, imagining a world where human energy is focused on building rather than destroying. Ailey’s work challenges us to rethink symbols of violence and consider how we can reshape them into symbols of hope and change.

Suggestion: Ailey uses photos as part of her work to humanise the kids and show the difference between the weapon and the victim. How can you do something similar with photographs to make an important part of your work more visible?

 

Duchamp, M., 1913. Bicycle Wheel. sculpture, New York: Museum of Modern Art.

DADA began as an anti-art movement, challenging the exclusivity and elitism of the art world. Early Dada artists believed that forming their own groups and rejecting traditional norms was essential to keep art dynamic and accessible.

Marcel Duchamp’s Bicycle Wheel (1913) reflects this spirit of rebellion and innovation. By combining a bicycle wheel and a stool, Duchamp strips them of their practical functions, redefining what art could be. This playful use of industrial materials and the wheel’s dynamic circular motion symbolize progress and creativity.

While Ailey’s Life Continues… critiques violence by making a grenade fragile, Duchamp critiques tradition by making everyday objects playful. Both works envision futures where transformation and human ingenuity reshape how we see the world, pushing boundaries toward something better.

*While it may look simple, Duchamp’s work is often a collaboration of objects and composition that boasts teamwork. This particular piece’s parts were sent to Duchamp by a close gallery curator at the time who knew how he like to subvert object functionality in his work and wanted to see what he would make of the objects. Read further below.

 

Elisa,16-18, china,  television war [acrylic on newpaper montage], never such innocence archives, london, (photo © never such innocence)

Television War by Elisa (16–18, China) portrays the harrowing reality of conflict through a striking composition of children running from an explosion, set against a chaotic backdrop of newspaper clippings about war. This contrast between the vivid imagery of fleeing children and the fragmented media highlights the urgency of peace and the innocence lost in conflict.  

The textured collage of newspaper clippings underscores how deeply war permeates media and society, making it an unavoidable part of our collective consciousness. By layering the immediate human suffering in the foreground with societal narratives in the background, Elisa creates a tension that forces viewers to confront the devastating consequences of violence. The piece calls for reflection on the impact of war and imagines a future where such suffering can be replaced with peace.

Suggestion: Why don’t you try using mixed media to increase impact? Elisa uses newspapers that are relevant to the topic she’s exploring regarding the Vietnam War. Go to your local library, as they might have a newspaper archive, and ask for relevant texts for your artwork!

 

Höch, H., 1919-1920. Cut with the Kitchen Knife (Schneidemaschine). collage, Berlin: National galerie.

Hannah Höch’s Cut with the Kitchen Knife (1919) uses photomontage to comment on the political and cultural upheaval of post-WWI Germany. Through a fragmented, chaotic composition, Höch combines images of industrial machinery, political figures, and cultural icons, creating a visual metaphor for societal instability. Her strategic use of scale—larger figures dominating some areas, smaller chaotic elements filling others—guides the viewer through her critique of oppressive systems and the fractured state of society. Her artwork is a capsule of culture that was present in Weimar Germany and sought to preserve the history before the fall of the government.

Similarly, Elisa’s Television War employs fragmentation and contrast to tackle societal issues, juxtaposing vivid images of fleeing children with chaotic newspaper clippings about war. While Höch critiques systemic oppression and envisions liberation, Elisa’s work highlights the immediate human cost of conflict, particularly the loss of innocence. Both pieces call for action, but where Höch’s montage challenges structural inequities, Television War urges a collective pursuit of peace and an end to violence.

 

In this conversation, we’ve explored how both Dada and Futurist art techniques can be powerful tools for envisioning a better future. Artists like Marcel Duchamp and the creators of paper-mâché grenades use creativity to challenge the symbols of violence, tradition, and war, offering alternative visions of peace, progress, and innovation. Through the use of unconventional materials, dynamic compositions, and the repurposing of everyday objects, these artworks encourage us to think beyond current limitations and imagine a world shaped by cooperation, growth, and transformation.

Now, it’s your turn to create! Use magazines, drawings, or any materials you like to make your own artwork that reflects your dreams for the future. Think about how you can take the images around you—whether they represent conflict, technology, or nature—and transform them into symbols of peace, unity, and progress. By reimagining the world in your artwork, you’re taking the first steps toward making those ideas a reality. Remember, art has the power to shape the future, and your imagination can be the key to creating the world you want to see.

 

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