Performing the Moment

This reading addresses the debate over the decontextualiztion of the work of art due to new photographic media. Questions about the significance of the reproduction of a work's authenticity arise as some claim the reproductions distance the viewer from the pure experience of the original work. The reading recalls the work of Joe Burden in "Shoot" 1971. He had a friend shoot him in the arm with a .22-caliber riffle. Some photographs and scars were the only proof of the performance. The photograph was used as a form of documentation in this case. I feel the photograph could have also taken the identity of the work in which it creates a window into the performance. Regardless of what constitutes the work itself, photographic documentation can prove crucial to the survival of the work. How is photography different than a descriptive artist statement? The photograph actually bares a relationship to the actual performance as a relic that was present at the exact moment that the work was performed. There is a difference between the original and a reproduction however, I do not think credit should be taken away from a medium that offers so much.
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