If I understand "political" to pertain to any activity that occurs in a polis, then you're right. If I were to spend time studying number theory, that, too, is

If I understand "political" to pertain to any activity that occurs in a polis, then you're right. If I were to spend time studying number theory, that, too, is political because it is an activity carried out within a polis, and it is impossible to separate the act from the entire web of interdependencies within the polis. I think your linkage of the political with the controversial is telling and makes me think this is not the idea of "political" you have in mind. In which case, I hope I'm making the non-controversial statement that an artist's intent is distinct from the interpretation of the artist's work. Sometimes an artist's intent is political, sometimes it is not. Sometimes a political interpretation sheds light on a work, and sometimes it doesn't. A long time ago, I recall one of my classmates telling me about a lecture he attended in which an analysis of Ancient Voices of Children was given with George Crumb in the audience. Afterwards, Crumb said he found the analysis fascinating and that he was unaware of the set of relationships discussed in the analysis until they had been pointed out, but none of those things were salient to him while he was composing the work. So I think the artist's intent is privileged, while any mode of analysis or interpretation has the burden of proving its value in each particular case.