Project Description (2)

When we consider a work of art, we treat it as a cultural artifact to be interpreted. Works of art can be either physical or they can consist of an action, but in either case, a large part of the interpretive process (that which is not directly related to experience) attempts to fit the work into a physical and social context.

We approach all physical objects with the knowledge that their present state is entirely informed by their physical history. We see time folded onto the present through the history that we infer from the object's spatial properties. This is especially true of artwork, when we attempt to unravel the construction of a sculpture or building, when we consider the layering of a painting, or the setup of a photograph.

In artwork, however, there is a less immediate sense of the history of a work, namely its social context. Interpreting, or assigning a meaning, to an artwork requires a knowledge or at least a conception of the social framework surrounding it. This is, of course, a moving target, both through time and across individual perspectives.

My thesis will attempt to show how current work is conscious of these interpretive processes. I will be considering some current photographers and visual artists, showing how their works can be considered objects of physical and social construction, and drawing insight into their meaning from these arguments.

I will also be producing and presenting a number of smaller projects of my own that will attempt to challenge, manipulate, and expose these components of the interpretive process. I hope to find new meaning from their reception.