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Patrick Nagatani , b. Aug 19, 1945

Renault Alpine, Wilkes Land, Antarctica

1988
6 in. x 8 in. (15.24 cm x 20.32 cm)

Medium and Support: Toned gelatin silver print

Credit Line: Gift of Claudia and Steven Schwartz (PA 1977)

Accession Number: 2013.31

Commentary

Patrick Nagatani’s Excavation series is built on a narrative about a fictional Japanese archaeologist named Ryoichi. In Nagatani’s make-believe, Ryoichi received a mysterious set of maps pointing to significant archeological and historical sites throughout the world. Following its key, Ryoichi and his team unearthed luxury automobiles in “widely disparate places and times”: a BMW in Tanzania, an Aston Martin in Israel, and a Bentley at Stonehenge. Nagatani asserts that Ryoichi’s finds are “evidence of an automobile culture which seems to parallel that of our own twentieth century” and that his photographs are the only evidence of the digs. Though at first glance the landscapes look real, they are in fact two and three-dimensional tableaux complete with miniature tools and model cars. Blurring the lines between reality and illusion, Nagatani’s work cleverly challenges photography’s reputation for documentary fidelity.

Exhibition List

This object was included in the following exhibitions:

Artistic Territories: Journeys in Place and Time [Phillips Academy Art 300] Addison Gallery of American Art , 5/25/2016 - 7/31/2016
Contemplating the View: American Landscape Photographs Addison Gallery of American Art , 9/8/2018 - 3/3/2019

Portfolio List Click a portfolio name to view all the objects in that portfolio

This object is a member of the following portfolios:

Exhibitions: Contemplating the View: American Landscape Photographs

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