When we talk of a picture being ‘accurate’, we are using a variety of the concept of ‘truth’. Its meaning depends on the context that we use it. Portraits can be considered truthful. We reveal our ‘true character’ when we act. Religions, philosophies and psychologies all attempt to revel our ‘true nature’. We talk about indexicality as offering a photographic ‘truth’ …
A Question of Authenticity
In Camera Lucida, Roland Barthes states that ‘From a phenomenological viewpoint, in the photograph, the power of authentication exceeds the power of representation‘. (Camera Lucida: pg 89) In my first review of Camera Lucida, I found the work depressing. Whilst there are important points of great merit (punctum, studium), ultimately I found it an overly-personal and complex exploration of death, especially as …