Roland Barthes: La chambre claire (complete book, 48 chapters)
2009-10, rice kernels, ink, gold leaf, mylar
48 packets each 5 x 3-1/2 x 1/4 inches
La chambre claire (Camera Lucida in English translations) was Roland Barthes’ last book, a meditation on aesthetics and photography, and by extension, mortality and the fleeting nature of what is captured.
For this project, the book is neatly divided into 48 short chapters – each denoted on the top right corner of each mylar rice packet. The packets are hung in groupings of three, forming a total of four columns and rows.
For the first time, the artist has used blue ink, and the gold grains (on which the title is written) are made with gold leaf instead of spray paint.
