THE CURATED EGO: ME + SELF-PORTRAIT AS YOU+ME, Late Shift at the National Portrait Gallery
The Curated Ego, January 2014, Late Shift at the National Portrait Gallery
Some of the images from this series have been part of the series of works by emerging and established photographic artists showcased at the National Portrait Gallery as part of ‘The Curated Ego’ project by Studio Strike – a conversation between leading academics and artists investigating questions around self-portraiture and personal identity.
Nov 2013 – Oxford Dictionaries announces ‘selfie’ as their international Word of the Year 2013!
Definition of selfie in English:
selfie
Pronunciation: /ˈsɛlfi
/ (also selfy)
/ (also selfy)
noun (plural selfies)
• informal
- a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website: occasional selfies are acceptable, but posting a new picture of yourself every day isn’t necessary
Self-portraits have been a method of self-exploration since humans first gazed at their own reflection in a pool of still water. With the invention of the mirror came an even stronger fascination to capture one’s likeness. Today it is difficult to imagine a world without self-reflections, we are so used to seeing images of ourselves in mirrors, on screens and photographs particularly since the invention of phone cameras from which we seem to be inseparable.
We all gaze and get lost in our reflections in the attempted to grasp our own identities. To the point of becoming narcissistic and oblivious to everything else.
This series explores self-portraits reflected in the works of Douglas Gordon’s Selfportrait as you+me. Douglas Gordon explores in this body of work the question of the very idea of the portrait, self-portrait and what it can become to test a new techniques, make a signature mark, launch into self-study, remember the past, as a way to release emotion and interact with it’s viewer.
In this instance the mirror itself is entirely passive; it merely reflects what occurs in front of it, calling upon the viewer to take an active part. A dynamic interplay arises between viewer’s fleeting appearance and disappearance. It is no longer a question of contemplation of the art or of losing oneself in the image or the art, but rather a direct confrontation and projection of one’s own reflection.
Some of the images from this series have been part of the series of works by emerging and established photographic artists showcased at the National Portrait Gallery as part of ‘The Curated Ego’ project by Studio Strike – a conversation between leading academics and artists investigating questions around self-portraiture and personal identity.