The Known [2004–2015]

Photography frequently implies recognition – to see is to know. The distribution of knowledge, in post-industrial society, has itself become an industry. Still, knowledge – in the sense of information organised into a meaningful whole – is often lost in sequences of unrelated data or limited by progressively narrowing specialisations. Although quantitatively we most certainly know much more than we used to, the very concept of learning has radically changed. The seemingly easy verifiability and quick access to information usually do not mean the acquisition of greater knowledge.

Instead of the typically impenetrable visual chaos of the media or the urban environment, these photographs represent isolated objects in, for the most part, undefined non-urban landscapes. The function of the structures presented is unknown. They presumably have a purpose, or have had one in the past. The private motivation behind these anonymous sculptures in public spaces remains a secret from the viewer. The banality of the fact that the meaning of these relatively simple elements of the visual environment usually cannot be easily deciphered may be read as an unpretentious sign of the epistemological shift in which we live. [MV]

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Verzija na srpskom

Ivan Manojlovic, “Known Photographs”, 2013

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