Art, Cul, Media
Private Lives, Public Spaces
Not going on this trip with the rest of the class made this assignment a little more difficult because when arriving at the exhibit I didn't really know what to look for specifically. My first thoughts, or emotions I should say, were nothing less than uncomfortable. This exhibit itself felt truly invasive as if I shouldn’t be here at all. Seeing other people's private lives projected for a mass majority to see felt wrong. But upon further thinking, why is it uncomfortable to watch? Today’s society runs off of social media. Platforms like Instagram, facebook, twitter, and other forms of social media allow people to project their every thought, action, or experience for the world to see. Was I finding discomfort in the fact that I was viewing this in a place filled with thousands of other onlookers? Was it because of the diversity of the films from amature films to personal home movies? I couldn't really tell.
The construct of one's identity is a reflection of the life one has lived. Their social, ethnic, or financial backgrounds. One’s personal life experiences. No two people, even twins won’t have the same identity construct the older they get into life. Construct of identity affects the way one thinks and acts. Judith A. Howard stated “Self-schemas include organized knowledge about one’s self, the cognitive response to the question of identity: Who am I? These include the characteristics, preferences, goals, and behavior patterns we associate with ourselves” our age to our gender all play a factor. In the end this construct is how we express ourselves to the world. The clothes we wear, the music we listen to, the career path we choose. It can also be seen by how we choose to be viewed by others.
Most home videos I had around in my home as a kid growing up were to only document the happy times, much like the shots of a family laughing around the dinner table. But as we all know especially now in the peak of the “social media age” people often “lie” about how their life truly is. This video could have been taken after an argument. What was the context behind the family laughing or the soldiers interacting with one another? It’s not stated in the video, but instead left up to us, the viewer, to decide. But with that being said of course I don’t believe that the people in these home movies ever had plans on being viewed by the world. But I do believe that they wanted to be viewed a certain way. We as humans naturally want to be accepted by the majority and only want certain parts of our lives remembered, which is why most home films show laughter or our happier selves.
But then there were the downsides to some films. I didn't pay too much attention but I do recall seeing a snippet of a protest going on at Disney, due to the unfair treatment of employees (I believe). Each person had their own motivation for why they felt wronged, but each of their “identities” just screamed “I'm tired of this shit” in my eyes. I think each of us at least once have felt wronged in a workplace and got fed up.
I'm truly not sure what it was I was supposed to get out of this exhibit. For me it was more about the grade, plus I have never been a huge fan of modern art because in today's society the word ART is thrown anywhere. So I already went in with an unsure mindset. Topped off with looking into the personal life of others that clearly wasn't meant for a museum. But I guess that’s why it's called “Private Lives, Public Space”.
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