The Embodiment of Lack

There are hosts of images in modern commercial production as well as contemporary art that depict not so much the color black as pure “absence”, an embodiment of lack. They all stem from different histories and disciplines, and so generalizing them is very dangerous. But the close proximity in time when they all sprung is impossible to ignore: 2004-2010.

Could they perhaps indicate, on a very literal level, some strange, new, subjective identification with the Dark Ages?

The first one to come to mind is obviously those damn ipod ads…

Here easily mocked, these ads were conceived somewhere from 2004-2005 and are still a mainstay in pop culture.

Let’s contrast this with the work of Kara Walker…

Walker’s work is challenging and profoundly layered, interconnecting the “absent” history of slaves during Victorian American with that elegant trend of the powerful elite of having silhouettes portraitures crafted of individuals. She delves into fantasies, dreams and nightmares - quite literally “graphic” fantasies dealing with violence and sexuality -  using the dark space to play with our imaginations and to fulfill the wishes of both masters and slaves, and within the two types.

Then there’s the geo-political embodiment of lack: redacted public information…

This is just one from a list of heavily-redacted documents related to the “waterboarding” of prisoners in CIA custody, released by the American Civil Liberties Union, May 27th, 2008. 

There’s also Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight…

“Black Spidey” in Spiderman 3…

Why do we identify with being “blacked-out”?

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE “MY GIRLS” HD from KNOWMORE on Vimeo.