| didi
gaudron (france) |
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holly
darton
Exhibition
open to the public on |
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| previous work by the artist |
| The
transformation of objects, materials and images is at the core of
the making of Didi Gaudron’s work and is often generated by a
process. She also has an interest in looking at the changing identity
of the body (and all living organisms) in relation to some recent
developments made by the scientific community in the fields of genetics
and biotechnologies. Her latest work Phenomeoxih investigates the transmission, circulation and reproduction of information. Using the photocopier, she invites the viewer to witness how much variation is generated from an original image by a machine producing reproductions. These reproductions are often regarded (in the case of official documents for instance) to be as good as the original, inducing one to forget that a copy, no matter how good, can not offer the quality of an original; reproduction is open to manipulation. Phenomeoxih explores the relationship between the imperceptible transformation of an image occurring trough the photocopying process and the use of extremely diluted solutions in homeopathic remedies. In Phenomeoxih Gaudron is using a portrait of scientist Jacques Benveniste MD, copied from his Internet site. This photo accompanies a text introducing Jacques Benveniste as a man who ‘has been at the centre of a cyclone of controversy since 1988, when he published a controversial article in the prestigious journal Nature. In that article he presented experimental evidence, verified at several other labs that drugs in highly dilute water solutions can have biological effects. The dilutions were made to the point that it was highly unlikely that even one molecule of the substance remained. In effect, his results appeared to demonstrate the existence of a memory in water, thus supporting the validity of homeopathy. The article sparked instant outrage among traditional scientists, as it seemed to be claiming something that was impossible according to the prevailing scientific paradigm. Nature withdrew its support for the article, and a debunking team was sent to Benveniste’s lab to discredit his work. As a result of this and other attacks, Benveniste became a virtual pariah in many people’s views. He lost his lab, his funding and his prestigious position as Director of Research at INSERM, a major French laboratory’. last updated 27.11.02 | site designed and maintained by Adrian Cousins |