Art seems a poor tool to address the rising tide of authoritarianism, and yet artists continue to make the attempt. Why, and to what effect? ⁠ ⁠ These are the questions that shape Kaelen Wilson-Goldie’s new book, “Beautiful, Gruesome, and True.” Through the works of Amar Kanwar, Teresa Margolles, and Syrian film collective Abounaddara, the book considers how art may operate as a proxy for political discourse in places where free speech has been suppressed. ⁠ ⁠ Eleanor Heartney reviews the book, writing that “despite these artists’ inspiring examples, one is left with a sense of the distance between the art world’s self-congratulatory embrace of such heroic activities and the gritty and seemingly intractable problems they address.”⁠ ⁠ Check the 🔗 link in our bio to read the full review.⁠ ⁠ 🖼️: Teresa Margolles: "Papers" (detail), 2003, 98 sheets of paper soaked with water that was used to wash corpses after autopsy.⁠ Credit: Photo: Kalle Sanner/Courtesy Galerie Peter Kilchmann, Zurich⁠ ⁠ [Image Description: Grid of 8 by 10 pieces of paper that are variously stained in faint brownish reds to saturated dark red.]