Monday 17 March 2014

Follow-up questions - Assignment 2: Mental Map

So another student on the course had some follow-up questions for me based on my Assignment 2 post, here are my answers to the further questions they had.

Another thing that caught my attention about your post was this statement; "I am also interested in artists who lie about their work; so that what is fact and what is fiction is questioned by the viewer, making the artist an untrustworthy authority."
I would like to know more about what you meant with this statement. When you say "untrustworthy authority," do you mean as in the "unreliable narrator" used in fiction? 

Yes, another way I could phrase 'untrustworthy authority' could be 'unreliable narrator'.
I am really interested in the idea of the artist/photographer being the keeper of the archive, particularly the use of found images and where the boundaries of documentary, historical artifact and art merge. 
Also, as found images have historical value, the images have a museum quality to them they automatically have an air of authority, whereas the way an artist uses these images may completely go against the original intent of the image. 
For example a portrait of an unknown woman from say 1910 could be labelled as a portrait of the 3rd Duchess of Kent by the artist but how would the viewer know this was a lie when viewing it in a gallery. To uncover the lie the viewer would have to go home and do their own research to discover the truth and to see what the 3rd Duchess of Kent (if such a person exists) looked like, like a strange historical treasure hunt.


Also, since you have an interest in in artist as the untrustworthy authority, are you familiar with William Beckford's gothic novel "Vathek"? 

I am not familiar with this work, I tend to read a lot of contemporary fiction and usually struggle with Gothic literature but I will look it up. Thanks for the recommendation.

I noticed your album contained a mixture of film, artwork, and music. I looked over them and admit that I am unfamiliar with them. Do any of these works call to you because you feel that they fit the above criteria of which you spoke?

All the items in my mind map are either based on stories being told from 1 view point, uprising against authority, unreliable narrators or people pretending to be someone else/something they're not. All the pieces make me question the creators reasons behind the work and question what is the truth beyond the image.
I'm at the very beginning of this project so trying to articulate what I mean is still abit rough around the edges but I hope I've managed to answer your questions in someway. 

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