Index

For this project, I interviewed six adults (4 men and 2 women) and asked them seven open-ended questions pertaining to a variety of stories that were being covered by the media (the war in Iraq, and natural disasters which included the record-breaking Hurricane Katrina, the devastating tsunami in Indonesia, and the major Kashmir earthquake in Pakistan). Each participant had an abundant amount of information regarding these issues and stories although no one had been directly affected by them. Every participant expressed feelings of sadness towards the natural disasters and anger and frustration towards the war. In compiling all of the interviews together, I discovered an emerging concern from my particpants that they felt as though the media works with an agenda, telling viewers only part of the story, actively instilling fear and causing them to anticipate destruction.

The projection is a creative synthesis of these interviews. A slideshow of six different colours fade in and out of a black screen. The delay between each colour dissipates where the void between each colour gradually becomes shorter and towards the end, non-existent. The installation does not contain one single image — only solid blocks of colour that are intentionally meant to provoke affect in the viewing experience. As a viewer, you are asked to create your own visual imagery by tapping into a repertoire of images collected from your own exposure to the media. This work asks, how has your ‘sight’ been implicated by visual culture (does it leave you with a desire to see more)?

Visual Culture (2005), Interview ‘data’ with video projection.

VISUAL CULTURE

NATALIE LEBLANC