The Obsolescence of the Photographic Object
© Lesley Hewitt
The Obsolescence of the Photographic Object
Wednesday, February 25, 7:00 pm
The New School
Tishman Auditorium
66 West 12th Street
New York, New York
(212) 229-5353
FREE
In this ever evolving digital world we live in, our perception of photographic images and the relationship to them seem to undergo a remarkable transformation. We no longer experience photographs as physical objects which are kept in shoe boxes and albums, but rather as images which reside on screens and are preserved on the hard drives of our computers.
As our relationship to images is transformed, what are the things that are lost and gained from this transformation? Has the indigenous value of the photographic object become obsolete?
Join us for a timely panel discussion at the New School and get inspiration and answers to these questions and many others. Moderated by Mia Fineman, curator of photography at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the panel discussion includes artists Leslie Hewitt, Miranda Litchtenstein, and Mark Wyse.
The Obsolescence of the Photographic Object is a part of the series Confounding Expectations: Photography in Context – an incentive on behalf of Aperture Foundation, Parsons The New School for Design, and Vera List Center for Art and Politics.
Tags: Lesley Hewitt, Marc Wyse, Mia Fineman, Miranda Litchtenstein, Panel Discussion, Photographic Object, The New School
March 29th, 2009 at 2:27 pm
To whom it may concern,
I went to the The Obsolescence of the Photographic Object at the New School and was looking forward in hearing moderator Mia Fineman from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, artists Leslie Hewitt, Miranda Litchtenstein, and Mark Wyse.
I have to say the introduction was interesting and the theme thought provoking but the press release was where the strength of the evenings presentation ended. Ms.Fineman’s moderation was weak from the start because she seemed lost, cosntantly looking for questions and what little she asked/proposed was at best trivial. Artist Leslie Hewitt spoke the most eloquent and was articulate. She brought up the understanding of perspective pre-camera and this could have opened up the panel into a huge discourse. Instead, artist Mark Wyse, gave an embarrassing slide presentation filled with jokes and juvenile ideas. The humor would have been okay had it not been the only thing he was offering. Mr.Wyse brought no interesting or thought provoking ideas and tried to make a mockery of the entire event.
Miranda Litchtenstein spoke about her process and made an attempt to speak about transformation and perspective. She at least made an “attempt” and carried through the presentation.
When all the panelists started to speak is when one realized who took their practice serious and who wanted to just invest in making money and stood in a position of privilege. Ms.Hewitt started and ended up proposing the most questions that related to the theme of the panel discussion and brought up many topics that prompted the audience to respond.
I am surprised and saddened that Aperture and the New Museum would invite a moderator who is uninterested in her subject matter. It is disappointing to see and hear Mark Wyse and Miranda Litchtenstein try and make a joke out of this whole event but it also revealed to the audience how some artists don’t really take their practice seriously. Maybe Aperture and the New Museum can invest more time on finding out not who the personally know but who is really making a deeper investment in their practice. Leslie Hewitt seemed to the only person in that panel
that made any sense and did not waste the audiences time.