Documentary

In a way, the idea of documentary in art is something of a contradiction.  The term 'documentary' leaves us with an impression of objectivity, but by definition, the artist is taking creative liberties and attempting to communicate something through the image.  Yet, art has long been a process of documenting; of trying to capture what has happened, what is true.  Often, artists can 'say more' about what is really going on by drawing connections or conveying the true feeling of a subject or situation for the viewer.

I am personally deeply interested in truth.  In this way I feel that documentary already does influence my work, though in a round-about way.  I always want my artwork to convey the truth as best I know it, or shine light on a truth that others may not have understood.  This is a big part of my work with the witches.  Witches are controversial.  People fear and revile them, but many (myself included) are fascinated by the them.  I want to show the truth about witches as best I know it; as keepers of wisdom and secrets of the earth, as clever, seductive, powerful women who love life, laughter, and exploring the unknown.  I also like the idea of using boring, official documents to tell a story, or to boil down someones life and existence to these remnants.  Documentary could also be interpreted to have connotations of memory and the idea of somehow legitimizing our existence by creating a record of it.  The 'one second life' video we watched today would attest to that.  I love the idea of trying not to alter or subjugate the material, but just really trying to capture it as is and let the story and the meaning emerge organically.