Art, Agency and Desire: Toward an Anthropology of Art Desires

Abstract

This article proposes an analytical framework that complements the well-established anthropological focus on the agency of art objects by shifting attention to their desire. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork in Comuna 13, Medellín (Colombia), it explores how the desire of local street artists—rather than their agencyis distributed through their artworks. Conducted in collaboration with the artistic collective Casa Kolacho, the research involved participation in their graffiti school, interviews with artists, and close analysis of selected murals. The findings suggest that these artworks express a desire to connect past, present, and future: preserving memory, celebrating transformation, and envisioning new possibilities. By foregrounding desire over agency, the article offers a temporal lens through which to understand how art shapes lived experience and collective imagination in contexts of urban change.