Jean Baudrillard is a French philosopher and photographer. His works focused on ideas surrounding the media, pop culture, war, consumerism, and many other social commentaries. Baudrillard is perhaps one of the most influential social and cultural theorists of our time. His influence has an extremely broad range with its most pop cultural reference being seen in the Matrix films. In the first Matrix film, Baudrillard\’s book Simulacra and Simulation can be seen when Neo (Keanu Reeves) opens up the hollowed out book to reveal some illegal belongings.
Beyond popular culture however, Jean Baudrillard\’s work is extensive and seen or referenced mostly in academia and in high brow art circles. I first came upon Baudrillard\’s work in graduate school while pursuing my MFA in Photography at UNT or the University of North Texas. I had produced a body of work titled “Replications,” which were photographs of real bugs, insects, and other small creatures on a white background. I paired the real life specimens with their toy representations in the same format as a series of framed diptychs. While making the work and exploring my own personal idea of “Real vs the representation of Reality,” I stumbled upon Baudrillard\’s book Simulacra and Simulation on the Internet.
Baudrillard\’s work became an immediate resource and began to help me in developing a broader view into photography and media as well as popular culture. I began to trace his work and other related writers and philosophers such as John Berger, Roland Barthes, Susan Sontag, Dziga Vertov, Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, Gilles Deleuze and many others.
Baudrillard\’s writing is challenging but very accessible. Below is a list of my favorite texts by Baudrillard in order from earliest to latest published by date.
Simulacra and Simulation – 1981
The Gulf War Did Not Take Place – 1991
As mentioned above, Jean Baudrillard was also a photographer. His photography isn\’t easy to find but posthumously his works have been finding their way into galleries. Perhaps the best example of his photography is found at Chateau Shatto, a gallery in Los Angeles. A solo exhibition of his works were shown there in December of 2015. The show was titled “Ultimate Paradox.”
As I am still wading through his texts and essays I am not providing any in depth thoughts on his work. Just merely listing and outlining his overarching thoughts as a main influence on my own works. Mostly his harsh criticism of post modernism and photography as well as American culture. This bizarre, banal, ironic, non-place that is obsessed with itself. A pataphysical anomaly of sorts. A fascinating place and great fodder for comedians and fantastical literature as well as over-sharpened and over-saturated photography and puffs of color smoke floating in the landscape.
You can find more work from Derek Rankins on his personal website www.derekrankins.com
You may also email Derek directly at derek@derekrankins.com