"The fact that memory is as vital as ever for knowledge of the self and for knowledge of the world is fundamental to the assertions I want to make concerning art and memory, in particular that art has become one of the most important agencies for the sort of "memory work" that is required by contemporary life and culture."
The above is from the introduction to Contemporary Art and Memory: Images of Recollection and Remembrance by Joan Gibbons.
This strikes directly at the core of what I am working on this semester, examining the idea that we, as individuals, operate based on a construct of ourselves that is rooted in memory. Memory which is highly malleable, potentially inaccurate, and sometimes outright false. This could potentially be positive, in the way that we interpret our memories to make us a better person. Of course if that is true, then the inverse would also be true, and that is a palpably horrifying thought.
“What matters in life is not what happens to you but what you remember and how you remember it.” Gabriel Marcia Marquez
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