Findings - Week 10
Age of the Image and The Anonymous Project
One of my aim for 2020 is to be more conscious of the time I spend reading/listening/watching new (to me) creative projects. I want to actively make time for other people’s work and creativity in my life. One way of achieving this has been to be more focused with my time but as the year gets busier, I am going to to lose that focus. To combat this, I am going to publicly share a list of works I’ve been enjoying on a weekly basis.
Age of the Image
In this four part documentary from BBC Four, James Fox explores how the power of images has transformed the modern world.
From ancient history to the present, he looks at image creation and consumption. He dissects our relationship to the visual world and how images have come to define and shape the world, from everyday life to politics and desire.
In four hours, the subject can only be brushed. James Fox asks questions of us, makes us think, and ultimately challenges us to consider out own image consumption.
One thing I always appreciate from James Fox documentaries is the breadth of artistic work he presents. There are always multiple artists and movements I have never heard of, or a work of art I had never considered the way he presents it.
This four part documentary is still available to watch on the BBC iPlayer.
THE ANONYMOUS PROJECT from lee shulman on Vimeo.
Lee Shulman – The Anonymous Project
Since 2017 filmaker Lee Shulman has been collecting photographic slides from everyday people. He exposes forgotten memories from our past, daily moments, celebrations, gatherings, and anything else people have deemed worth photographing.
Browsing the collection is like leafing through a family album, except that you don’t know the people. But the scenes are familiar. There are children playing, birthday parties, friends dancing, family portraits, newborns, holidays, etc.
I am fascinated by those everyday snapshots that often get lost. Those moments are the ones we live, the ones that accumulated make up our lives and yet they are too easily forgotten in the flow of history.
One thing that I can’t help but wonder as I explore the collection is what happened to the original owners of those photograph?
Explore The Anonymous Project here.
In the same vein but in video format, there is the Home Movies project from MoMA that is worth checking out.
Add a Comment