If we take a quick look at all the big artistic events of the recent years, we immediately notice that the turbulent sociopolitical condition of Greece has become the main inspiration of the current cultural production. Indeed, plenty of exhibitions and art projects seek to express a strongly radical political discourse by assimilating ideas and practices that have emerged from the various social movements of the period. However, while contemporary art becomes more and more radical, its dependence on private institutions is getting stronger.

This paper investigates the relation between art and politics in the Greek cultural production of the past decade. A particular focus is placed upon the two prevailing and at the same time contradictory tendencies of contemporary art: social engagement and institutional integration. Therefore, we seek to outline the limits and possibilities that emerge through this coexistence. In order to better understand this condition, we examine the interrelation between artistic avant-garde and the institutions in different historical phases, through the study of various art theories examining the "political" and the "autonomy" in art. The analysis continues with a study of the contemporary art of the 21st century on an international level and with a focus on the economic, social and political conditions in which contemporary art is produced, distributed and consumed. Finally, we describe artistic initiatives and projects which have made their appearance during the period of the crisis attempting to culturally act and intervene outside the boundaries of the formal cultural policies and politics.

The aim of the study is neither to defend nor to blame a particular art production model/paradigm. It aims to encourage reflection on the issue of the complex role of art and culture today. By  whom and for who is the radical art produced? Does it have the power to bring or to mobilize for social change or it simply results to the aestheticization of social conflicts?