Visiting lecturers- Dr Alison Nordstrom and Dr Amak Mahmoodian
Dr Alison Nordstrom:The talk will be made up of topics including: Photography, memory and archivesEthnography begins -->
- Charles White- (an account of the regular gradation in man, and in different animals and vegetable 1799).
- Just by looking at someone, you could tell whether they would make a good husband or a bad husband.
- People were being scrutinised about their appearance, believing that certain aspects could tell you a lot about an individual; for example whether they are a criminal.
- 1888- clothing became an important part of an individuals appearance --> William Carrick studio (race types) costume became a way of stereotyping.
Constructing Ethnographic Archives -->
- "The person with the camera has the power"
- Some of these aspects, including slavery and people dressing up in tribal clothes were used within things, such as greetings cards (souvenirs), these images were also used in photographers advertisements.
- The more the people understood the people that they were controlling, the better that they could control them.
- Souvenir photographs were being displayed in museums, because the artefacts pictured (e.g. clothing etc), were ones that they had.
- It was seen that a half dressed coloured woman was pictured for scientific purposes, but if it was a white woman that had been pictured, then this was seen as pornography.
Using the Ethnogenic archives today -->
- Jorma Puranen --> created many installation pieces, putting these tribal photos back into their true surroundings and re-photographing.
- Leah King-Smith --> Taken 19th Century photos
- Sammy Baloji --> and re-installed them (original stereotyping)
- 'From here I saw what happened and I cried' - Carrie Mae Weems
Dr Amak Mahmoodian:- Revolution - Iran/Iraq
- 'False face'
- The life of Iranian women --> double contrast of how women are portrayed
- Re-photographed older Iranian photos and used them as a mask, which other individuals held up in front of them. This consisted of 47 images. (For this project she used her friends and family)
- She had to cautious when taking pictures in public, because in Iran you have to have permission before you can do so - this project went on for two years.
- "You're present could become your past due to the distance/time away from those people, and/or place that you once knew so well".
- 'Darkness and light become lovers' - these were the tattoos that he farther had inked on to his body. Tattoo's was something of a taboo in Iran, none of her friends fathers had them.
- Birth certificates are the equivalent of a licence in Iran (Main form of I.D)
- She then went onto do a project on I.D photographs- consisting of 74 images in total - presented along with their finger print as well.
- Rejected photographs --> scratching out the individuals face
- 'Shenasnameh'
- She had to make a boo. She stitched each photograph with her hair and also created a book mark with a plaited piece of hair. She then later published the real book, but did not use her hair as she did not have enough left to cut off any more. What she was doing was seen as breaking the rules, as it is the belief that if you show your hair you would go to hell.
- Making a photograph is a personally charged affair
- By the way that the registration office was doing this, they were trying to make Iranian women all look the same.
- Absence and presence