On Camera Situationism
2015-2017
Book, 143 pages

The camera is not only a producer of images, but also of social situations. In the presence of a camera people act and respond in a certain way. In other words: the camera is a catalyst for types of behavior. With On Camera Situationism I examine through both a theoretical and experimental approach how ‘a specific use of the camera provokes types of behavior’ - this is what I call a ‘camera situation’. A camera situation is characterized by its ability to survey, still, there are many other factors that contribute to the production of such a situation. It should therefore be considered a ‘construct’. Through the staging of different situations my research examines the impact of altering the construct. With the documentation of these situations, which are also produced by a camera, the influence of cameras on human behavior is made visible. In doing so, I try to unfold how a specific camera construct produces a specific camera situation, but also put forward an alternative perspective on the photographic medium.