SMU Photo 2 Fall 2019

Constructing yourself to fee and look a certain way in the social media world. Living an "Insta Lie"

ICONS by Parker Day

Amalia Ulman's Excellences & Perfections

Mixing Media - Post digital identity photography 1. (couldn't find the artist) 2.  https://www.flickr.com/photos/ashleysophiamassarella/5136109597/in/set-72157625289607582/ 3.  https://www.studiointernational.com/index.php/shu-lea-cheang-3x3x6-taiwan-venice-biennale-2019-video-interview

https://flic.kr/p/c9omAb This image is by Annie Polchinski off Flickr. I had trouble downloading the image but above is the link to the photo. I thought this represented identity as it shows many different personas, maybe this could reference the different personalities people portray online.

I found the idea of movements made in an image and the reflectiveness of the environment affects a child very interesting. It almost seems like childhood psychology specifically the Baldwins work (six months and up). I found it very interesting that the mirroring stage of this is part of your identification or a transformation when the subject assumes an image. I found this most compelling as I never thought of an identification as mirroring an image.

This article goes deep into an infant establishing the 'I' when looking within the mirror to see an image of himself. Psychologically, this could create ego, seeing natural reality, internal pressures, imagination, subjective fragmented body, and isolating identification of the 'I' within the image seen in the mirror. Does this lead to narcissism? Or is it a negative image of self-evaluation within the mind of an infant trying to find 'I'? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3gt-rVr0p4

In Lacan's "The Mirror Stage as Formative of the I Function," the author identifies what he dubs the "mirror stage" in a human child's psychological development, which likens the interaction of a child confronting their image in a mirror to a literal mirroring of their primary caregivers through a lack of subjectivity. In infancy, Lacan argues that a child cannot tell the difference between themselves and their parents, feeling inherently connected to them. However, when confronted with a mirror repeatedly through development, they discover their separateness and individuality from their parents (thus developing an "I"). For Lacan, the mirror stage identifies the self as dependant upon other objects, or another individual (such as a caregiver). 

Child development is complex and multifaceted. I believe that most babies are simply fascinated by the mirror while in self discovery. To suddenly see themselves from the outside in must be marvelous. The idea that a baby so young would find fault in how they moved their body seems ludicrous to me. Babies at this age do not have the critical thinking skills to compare and contrast.

This reading brought to mind some ideas. The first, we create our reality and second, what we create is real. As humans we have endless capabilities within our mind. Harnessing those capabilities and realizing the power of our own thoughts is the hard part of life.

The hyperreal- generations by models of a real without origin. It is extremely realistic in detail almost identical. How do we see the difference? What I had trouble understanding was when is the divinity of the real world multiplied in simulacra? I honestly had a hard time with this reading but the idea of a simulation is very intriguing to me.

Simulation: "pretending...leaves the principle of reality intact...[but that's not what it means]...threatens the difference between the 'true' and the 'false', the 'real' and the 'imaginary' Does technology confuse us into thinking the simulation is the reality? Does this cause depression when we find out that reality is nothing like the simulation?

Jacques Lacan initially stated that the mirror stage is part of an infant's development from 6 to 18 months old. In the early 1950's Lacan stated that the mirror stage no longer considered the life of an infant, but as representing a permanent structure of subjectivity, or also known as "imaginary order". Lacan was saying that an infant or child has needs, desires, and wants, but can only access those when they grow up. When Jacques thought of the mirror stage as a part of an infant's development, he stated that it was the moment they recognized themselves while looking into a mirror and this would form the basis for the development of their ego. Another way of looking at it is that the identity of the child becomes dependent on what the outside world thinks of them and they need that acknowledgement for their sense of self hood. 

Baudrillard states that the "hyperreal" does not have to be rooted in reality in order for it to be considered real.  Baudrillard also states that there are three levels (or orders) of simulacra. The first order of simulacra creates then distinguished from representation. For this order, he gives the example of a painting. The second order of simulacra, according to him, blurs the distinction between reality and representation. An example of this order, he explains,  could be anything that is manufactured because, through the use of machines and technology, the indexicality of each item is erased. The third order of simulacra is what focuses on the creation of new realities through what he calls the "hyperreal". To understand the hyperreal in easier terms, think about celebrities who reach a point in their career where they are so famous and every aspect of their lives is taken care of by someone else. They are said to live in a hyperreal world. The reason for thi...

In Baudrillard's work "The Precession of the Simulacra," he aims to update the argument presented in the Borges fable of simulation. In the fable, cartographers drew a map that ends up covering the territory of an empire exactly, reproducing with accuracy everything within the empire. However, he argues that currently, this is an outdated way of thinking of simulation, as it is only a reproduction of the real. Instead, the author argues that our contemporary society is concerned with the concept of the "hyperreal". With the birth of technologies such as AI and VR, it is no surprise that Baudrillard makes this argument, as he states that the "hyperreal" does not have to be rooted in reality in order for it to be considered real. He states that there are three levels (or orders) of simulacra. The first order of simulacra creates the real as distinguished from representation. For this order, he gives the example of a painting. The second order, he claim...

In "Immanence Online," Laura Marks argues that online space is interconnected as it is material, instead of being a separate entity from the physical space that we interact in. She aims to prove this theory by analyzing online space through five different levels, from the quantum to the social, that illustrate not only the social but also economic relationships that characterize online space. She identifies growth in a virtualized experience online and ties this to an increasing need for immediacy, utilizing the example of reality TV shows which personalize/emphasize individuality. She argues that the virtual has a material weight for it does not exist in a distinct, abstract realm.