Jenny Holzer

It is amazing how much Jenny Holzer can say in so few words. I found that the list of truisms reminded me of bumper stickers. Not in a bad way; these would be very insightful bumper stickers that challenge a person to think what the message behind it is. The truisms also reminded me of psalms or proverbs from the Bible and Chinese proverbs.

Yet, I think she pokes fun at the people who take some sayings or phrases seriously because they can be so redundant. Once you really begin to think about it, it is crazy how many sayings we come across each day that tell us what to do. It is always you are this, remember this, be this, do this, etc. It is pretty overwhelming once you really think about it. I came up with a truism of my own: You are unique like everybody else.

When it comes to Holzer's photography, I find the lighting and transparency of the words to really attract the attention of the eye. The viewer is immediately drawn to the language of the piece, then you can step back to look more at the whole visual. I also find choosing black and white over color to be more raw in a sense. She uses the digital signs to say different phrases and it makes the phrase more commanding. There is just something about technology and digitalized words that make things look forceful. Four of the five etchings (I couldn't read one of them) say the same thing: There is no reference or mention of George Orwell on this page. I wasn't very clear on her point with this. I know who George Orwell is. Have people compared the ideals in her art to that of George Orwell since she uses commanding language like that of a communist regime? I don't really know. I do know that Holzer uses powerful language to convey her message.

Here is another photograph I found to be shocking and real. It is Sally Mann's "Candy Cigarette" and it was taken in 1989.