#syncom

Commissioned by the art organization Creative Time, Paglen spent five years interviewing scientists, artists, anthropologists, and philosophers in order to find the answer to a difficult question: how can we leave behind an abiding representation of our experience as human beings? Paglen's project, known as "The Last Pictures," is an ultra-archival silicon disc encased in a gold-plated shell designed by materials scientists at MIT and Carleton College. The disc is micro-etched with a set of one hundred pictures carefully chosen by Paglen and his research team in an attempt to encapsulate the human experience. The disc is attached to the Echostar XVI satellite, which was launched on the 20th of November, 2012. The curators of this project faced the formidable task of choosing a small handful of photographs to define our fluid nature. The images cover a wide range of subjects: "Earthrise," pictured here; children suffering from the effects of Agent Orange; photos of cave paintings at Lascaux, France; equipment used in the construction of the atomic bomb; and comparison shots of melting glaciers. The meaning and intent behind these images, much like those behind the cave paintings included in the archive, will be obscured by the passage of time. They represent an attempt by a finite and ephemeral collective consciousness to make its mark across billions of years, without knowing how potential future observers will interpret them without context. The archive serves as a philosophical attempt to understand ourselves and our development as a species, but also is intended as a statement for the future. These images serve as a sort of "message in a bottle" set adrift in the sea of deep time. Paradoxically, what acts as a meditation on the fleeting nature of the present moment is also an endeavor to preserve it long after it is gone. -RLO Sources: http://creativetime.org/projects/the-last-pictures/ http://www.paglen.com/?l=work&s=lastpictures&i=11 Image credit: "Earthrise," NASA/William Anders tagTag PhotopinAdd LocationpencilEdit