Depraved: The Story of Dangerous Art

‘Essential . . . An urgent reckoning with institutional violence, curatorial practice and the meaning of freedom’ Dan Hicks

‘Daisy Dixon is the guide you need in encountering the disturbing side of human expression’ Helen Carr

‘A zesty new history of “dangerous art” . . . Skips with panache across periods and genres . . . Even at its most provocative, Dixon’s book remains lucid and engaging’ Daily Telegraph

What makes an artwork immoral? Why do these troubling creations have such a hold on us? And how should we deal with them?

We live in a moment when the dangers of art seem more prevalent than ever: artists are ‘cancelled’ for their misdeeds, public statues are toppled, images of violence and obscenity await us at the touch of a button. But as this provocative new history demonstrates, we humans have always used art to make sense of the less innocent aspects of ourselves and the world around us.

In Depraved, philosopher of art Daisy Dixon takes the reader on a journey through some of the most volatile and contentious works ever produced – from prehistoric sculpture to extreme metal music, Renaissance paintings to videogames. She reveals how beautiful art can sometimes be the most insidious, and why the greatest threat might lie in our own judgements about the art we censor or condemn.

Above all, Dixon builds a powerful case for returning the terrible gaze of our disturbing creations, showing how we can confront them head-on and tame their toxic effects.