On February 23rd, 2008 I visited the International Center of Photography. I toured the whole museum, but mainly focused on the exhibited entitled, “Archive Fever – Uses of the Document in Contemporary Art.” The showcase encompassed a wide variety of subject matter and mediums. The brochure describing the show echoed my thoughts, claiming that “no single definition can convey the complexities of archives.” Indeed, there really was no unifying subject matter within the exhibit. However, the artists succeeded in uniting under the title of ‘archives’ through their exploration of ‘documentary truth.’ This truth was not always literal. In some instances, the images used within the art were fabricated, not necessarily representing a past reality. Nevertheless, even the fictionalized works spoke of truth. They, along with the classic documentary pieces, disclosed hidden details about society, global ideologies, gender relations and politics.
One of my favorite pieces was entitled “Floh” by Tacita Pean. The installation was comprised of multiple images of various sizes. The pictures themselves were interesting. Yet, what caught my attention was the process behind the work. Floh spent seven years combing through various flea markets in Europe and North America, searching for found photos – candid snap shots being sold for cheap. After sorting through her collection of 163 photos, she pieced together a series based on images that were culturally significant in content. She took the original 8x10 colored images and enlarged them with a Digital Epson Printer and mounted them in clean glass frames with simple matting. Thus, by elevating candid photos to the level of gallery work, the line between amateurism and fine art becomes hazy. I wasn’t able to evaluate the images critically because their content was not composed based on aesthetic appeal. They were photos of people going about their day to day life – not images pieced together by meticulous photographers.
While viewing the photos, I was struck by the idea of someone wandering into a gallery and seeing their family on display. Such a scenario is odd but quite probable. What are the ethics behind taking photos meant for closed albums and placing them in a public forum? Does buying a box of images grant you the right to use them as you please? I’m still not quite sure what I think…
The images also made me understand the universality of personal photos. No matter who takes them, they generally contain the same elements – vacations, pets, cars, kids. People with cameras are people desperate to preserve a moment. Nonetheless, I wonder if such immediacy would still exist if we collectively realized that we are all enraptured by the same moments on repeat.
One of my favorite pieces was entitled “Floh” by Tacita Pean. The installation was comprised of multiple images of various sizes. The pictures themselves were interesting. Yet, what caught my attention was the process behind the work. Floh spent seven years combing through various flea markets in Europe and North America, searching for found photos – candid snap shots being sold for cheap. After sorting through her collection of 163 photos, she pieced together a series based on images that were culturally significant in content. She took the original 8x10 colored images and enlarged them with a Digital Epson Printer and mounted them in clean glass frames with simple matting. Thus, by elevating candid photos to the level of gallery work, the line between amateurism and fine art becomes hazy. I wasn’t able to evaluate the images critically because their content was not composed based on aesthetic appeal. They were photos of people going about their day to day life – not images pieced together by meticulous photographers.
While viewing the photos, I was struck by the idea of someone wandering into a gallery and seeing their family on display. Such a scenario is odd but quite probable. What are the ethics behind taking photos meant for closed albums and placing them in a public forum? Does buying a box of images grant you the right to use them as you please? I’m still not quite sure what I think…
The images also made me understand the universality of personal photos. No matter who takes them, they generally contain the same elements – vacations, pets, cars, kids. People with cameras are people desperate to preserve a moment. Nonetheless, I wonder if such immediacy would still exist if we collectively realized that we are all enraptured by the same moments on repeat.
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