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Reflection: Where does documentary end and art begin?

Posted on by Ben Hodson

In understanding my practice I have had to ask questions such as where does documentary end and art begin? This question was easy to answer several years ago, but no I find myself flirting with these two distinct areas in different ways.  Artists such as Luc Delahaye blur the distinctions further (interestingly his work is one of my personal favourites).  I personally think that as I regularly interact with the space in front of the lens, then my practice fits more comfortably within an art context, however, I mostly present a documentation of what I have been performing/constructing etc, so the relationship is inherently more complex.  When you document something there is an implied relationship to the truth, although this can be heavily scrutinised in an era where “to photoshop” is a verb.  This uncomfortable association with the notion of truth is one of the defining practices of documentarians, where as artists seem skilful and intentional at lying or bending the truth to suit their aims and objectives.