"Published in conjunction with the exhibition of the same title, on view at the Smithsonian American Art Museum from June 21, 2018 through January 6, 2019." Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents:
Foreword / John Jacob, Trevor Paglen, Wendy Hui Kyong Chun, Kate Crawford. Conversation with Trevor Paglen / John P. Jacob -- Resistance at a Moment of Danger: On Trevor Paglen's Recent Work / Luke Skrebowski -- Conversation with Trevor Paglen / John Jacob, Trevor Paglen, Wendy Hui Kyong Chun, Kate Crawford.
Summary:
Trevor Paglen is an American artist, geographer, and author. "What I want from art," says Paglen, "is to help see the historical moment we live in." His photographs make visible things we're not meant to see; he regards this invisibility as emblematic of that moment. Looking toward the earth, sea, or sky as earlier artists have, Paglen captures the same horizon seen by Turner in the nineteenth century or by Ansel Adams in the twentieth. Only in Paglen's images, a drone or classified communications satellite is also visible. "For me," Paglen observes, "seeing the drone in the twenty-first century is a bit like Turner seeing the train in the nineteenth century." Turner was less interested in the technology than its effects on perception, by its ability to accelerate human motion. Paglen is interested in our evolving perception in space. Standing in the Western landscape where Adams worked, Paglen photographs the drone as it photographs him. His images suggest that our conceptions of space and visuality are undergoing radical change; the physical limits of vision are no longer a reliable measure of what is visible to (often mechanical) others. Exhibition: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC, USA (21.06.2018-06.01.2019).
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.