Archive, Photography and the Language of Administration

219 Pages·2020·2.932 MB·

by  Jane Birkin

Archive, Photography
and the Language
of Administration
Amsterdam
University JANE BIRKIN
Press
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Archive, Photography and the
Language of Administration
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The book series RECURSIONS: THEORIES OF MEDIA, MATERIALITY, AND
CULTURAL TECHNIQUES provides a platform for cuttingedge research in the
field of media culture studies with a particular focus on the cultural impact of
media technology and the materialities of communication. The series aims to
be an internationally significant and exciting opening into emerging ideas in
media theory ranging from media materialism and hardware-oriented studies
to ecology, the post-human, the study of cultural techniques, and recent
contributions to media archaeology. The series revolves around key themes:
– The material underpinning of media theory
– New advances in media archaeology and media philosophy
– Studies in cultural techniques
These themes resonate with some of the most interesting debates in international
media studies, where non-representational thought, the technicity of knowledge
formations and new materialities expressed through biological and technological
developments are changing the vocabularies of cultural theory. The series is also
interested in the mediatic conditions of such theoretical ideas and developing
them as media theory.
Editorial Board
– Jussi Parikka (University of Southampton)
– Anna Tuschling (Ruhr-Universität Bochum)
– Geoffrey Winthrop-Young (University of British Columbia)
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Archive, Photography and the
Language of Administration
Jane Birkin
Amsterdam University Press
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Cover illustration: Author’s own photograph
Cover design: Suzan Beijer
Lay-out: Crius Group, Hulshout
isbn 978 94 6372 964 2
e-isbn 978 90 4855 315 0 (pdf)
doi 10.5117/9789463729642
nur 670
© J. Birkin / Amsterdam University Press B.V., Amsterdam 2021
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of
this book may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted,
in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise)
without the written permission of both the copyright owner and the author of the book.
Every effort has been made to obtain permission to use all copyrighted illustrations
reproduced in this book. Nonetheless, whosoever believes to have rights to this material is
advised to contact the publisher.
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Table of Contents
List of illustrations 7
Acknowledgements 9
Introduction 11
1 The archivization of the image 27
2 The social archive 61
3 Catalogue, list, description 93
4 The archiving camera 125
5 Archival art, performativity and poetics 155
6 Afterword: the post-digital archive 183
Bibliography 203
Index 213
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List of illustrations
Figure 1.1 August Sander, Master Mason (1932). © Die Photog-
raphische Sammlung/SK Stiftung Kultur—August
Sander Archiv, Cologne / DACS 2019. 33
Figure 1.2 Alphonse Bertillon, albumen silver print from glass
negative (1894). Recto showing photograph of Gaston
Perot, verso identifying Perot as labourer and anar-
chist. Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
(Gilman Collection). 35
Figure 1.3 Illustration and description of the louse from Robert
Hooke, Microscopic Observations or Dr Hooke’s Wonder-
ful Discoveries by the Microscope (London, Printed
for Robert Wilkinson, 1780). Courtesy of the Special
Collections Division, Hartley Library, University of
Southampton, Rare Books quarto QH 271. 44
Figure 1.4 Spirit photograph by William Hope featuring Harry
Price as sitter and featuring the ‘spirit’ of Price’s
mother (c.1922). University of London, Senate House
Library. 51
Figure 1.5 Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin Yekaterina
Samutsevic, of Pussy Riot, from Broomberg and
Chanarin’s series of portraits Spirit is a Bone (2013).
© Broomberg & Chanarin; Courtesy the artists and
Lisson Gallery. 56
Figure 2.1 Carte de Visite by Oliver François Xavier Sarony (1860s),
albumen silver print. Recto showing George Henry
Broughton, verso showing the photographer’s mark.
Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Albert
Ten Eyck Gardner Collection). 63
Figure 2.2 Mountbatten Album, MB2-L7, page 62, ‘Acrobatics!!
Malta, Summer 1932’. Special Collections Division,
Hartley Library, University of Southampton. 66
Figure 2.3 As above, page 63 (these two pages together form a
spread). Special Collections Division, Hartley Library,
University of Southampton. 67
Figure 2.4 Carousel of slides for the Kodak Carousel Projector.
Author’s own photograph. 75
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8 Archive, PhotogrAPhy And the LAnguAge of AdministrAtion
Figure 2.5 Numbering system on the carousel. Author’s own
photograph. 78
Figure 3.1 Strongroom, Special Collections, University of South-
ampton. Courtesy of the Special Collections Division,
Hartley Library, University of Southampton. 95
Figure 3.2 Hetain Patel, installation view from Love and Mar-
riage (2012). Courtesy Hetain Patel and John Hansard
Gallery. Photo: Steve Shrimpton. 101
Figure 3.3 ‘Two Boys Boxing’, From Carmen Kilner’s Album, part
of The Basque Children of ’37 Archive. Courtesy of
Carmen Kilner. 115
Figure 4.1 Jane Birkin. Still from film 0025, part of the screen-
based installation El Rastro (2014). Author’s own work. 141
Figure 4.2 Jane Birkin. Still from film 0030, as above. Author’s
own work. 141
Figure 4.3 Jane Birkin. Still from film 0037, as above. Author’s
own work. 142
Figure 4.4 Page from a copy book of the First Duke of Wellington,
a memorandum dated 20 November 1806, MS 61
WP1/165. Special Collections Division, Hartley Library,
University of Southampton. 151
Figure 5.1 Ceiling ducting carrying filtered air and other services,
Special Collections, University of Southampton.
Courtesy of the Special Collections Division, Hartley
Library, University of Southampton. 161
Figure 5.2 Nine contact prints from the Hampshire Roads Survey,
MS1/LF780/UNI 7/105/6. Special Collections Division,
Hartley Library, University of Southampton. 164
Figure 5.3 Jane Birkin (2012) Still from the film Island at 00:03:56.
Author’s own work. 171
Figure 5.4 Jane Birkin (2012) Still from the film Island at 00:04:08.
Author’s own work. 171
Figure 5.5 Jane Birkin (2012) Still from the film Island at 00:04:19.
Author’s own work. 172
Figure 6.1 Figure 6.1: Kenneth Goldsmith Printing out the Internet,
Labor Gallery, Mexico City (2013). Courtesy of the artist
and Labor Gallery. 189
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Acknowledgements
Although I produced this book as an independent scholar, I consider myself
very lucky to work within the research community at Winchester School
of Art, University of Southampton, and in the Special Collections at the
same University. I would like to thank my colleagues for their kindness and
positivity that has sustained me throughout. Special acknowledgements
must go to Jussi Parikka and Sunil Manghani at Winchester School of Art,
and it goes without saying—but in true archival fashion I want to record
it here—that I am indebted to Anne-Marrie Steel and Karen Robson in
Special Collections for their thoughtfulness and advice.
Outside of the University of Southampton, this book has benefitted
from the incisive comments and questions from scholars at the various
conferences and symposia that I have taken part in, and from the editors
and anonymous peer reviewers of the journal articles that I have written.
Many ideas that were first tested out in these places have been built upon
here. A huge thank you must also go to Michelle Henning. She examined
my PhD, and if was not for her confidence in my ideas and my writing this
book may not have materialized at all.
Finally, and most importantly, my truly heartfelt thanks go to my part-
ner, Roy Naylor, and to our son, Tom Naylor, who have listened patiently,
responded wisely, and supported me unconditionally throughout.
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