Photography- the art of making the invisible visible?
Art and photography are very powerful media for shaping public perceptions about refugees and asylum seekers. On the one hand it can open new perspectives and insights but on the other hand it can influence one’s feelings and push them into a certain direction. Especially portraits that aim to represent refugees can reach the opposite and exercise power over them, instead of showing their perspective.
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Identitäten, Kenya 2015 (by Alexa B.) |
As a photography/ fine art as well as an anthropology student, I am sometimes struggling to reconcile both subjects’ perspectives, that are often very different.
The representation of people by photographic means can pose a great difficulty when different values of anthropology and art clash with each other. For example I have worked a lot with portraits dealing with identity. My aim was to display the identity of the portrayed person, trying to deal with their identity conflict and using techniques for the destruction of the portrait in order to construct a new identity or revealing the construction of identity. In the end of my project I found out that it wasn’t really about the person I have portrayed but about myself. My work wasn’t actually showing the identity of the person I have portrayed but my own inner identity conflict. To connect this with the subject of cultural anthropology (which I have started one year after that art work) it can be linked to the anthropological theory that you can’t document culture or carry out fieldwork without including your own subjective point of view.
According to Cabot (2016: 2 ff.) the attempts of representing refugee voices, silences them even more and show the „limitation of knowledge itself“(2016: 4). Following this claim, the same could be said about trying to represent refugees through art and photography. By trying to represent refugees through photos, you make them more invisible, as you are not showing their - but your own perspective.
Through the selective use of light, camera perspective and presence of the photographer the situation and context is being changed (Hohenberger (1988) Lektion 10: 3).
A photo can only reveal a brief moment and not a permanent situation. The photographer has the power to deliberately take a photo of one specific situation and to froze the moment. This makes it seem like a permanent situation without explaining the real context of the situation. Furthermore, through these methods, the photographer is able to evoke certain feelings in the perceiver and has the power to manipulate or influence public opinion.
Cabot argues that photographs add to the idea of refugees being „tragic and vulnerable figures“ (Cabot 2016: 16). „The elision of the faces“ in order to protect their identity „the limits of visibility“ and knowledge is highlighted. (Cabot 2016: 16).
So then, what’s the point of trying to represent or document refugees voices? Is it even possible?
It is important to be aware of the fact that photographs are a powerful mean of influencing people’s perceptions about refugees and asylum seekers. Especially nowadays, as photos and images are an every-day companion in our lives and spread very rapidly through social media. Anthropologists can contribute towards a critical approach of media/photography by examining the self- representation and the representation of others by photography and other media. The strategy and methods of visualization, that influences people can be revealed by uncovering the cultural context.
Clearly, this is a very anthropological point of view. From an artist’s perspective you could argue that art isn’t meant to be anthropological, ethnical or politically correct. Normally the perceiver of the piece of art or photograph is also the interpreter and the context is left complete open and free to interpret. Thus, the difference between documentary-photography and art-photography needs to be considered, although its not that easy to clearly separate these genres. Art-photography can also have a documentary character as documentary- photography can also be art.
In addition it can be claimed that artist should be careful not to add to specific controversy or influence political opinions. But isn’t that all about art? Isn’t that often the point of art, to provoke, criticizes or shock people?
Anyway, me as being in the situation of studying both art-photography and anthropology, I somehow have to deal with these different worlds that collide with each other. Let’s hope it doesn’t lead to an identity crisis… Just kidding. Let’s stop with that for now.
References:
Hohenberger, Eva (1988): Die Wirklichkeit des Films. Dokumentarfilm. Ethnographischer Film. Jean Rouch. Hildesheim: Ulms.
Cabot, Heath (2016): Refugee Voices: Tragedy, Ghosts, and the Anthropology of Not Knowing. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography. College of the Atlantic: Bar Harbor.