HELLO, CAUCASUS

Digital Printing, sound. 2016  

Max Mesiats' exhibition, "HELLO, CAUCASUS" explores the concept of "post-truth" through the lens of documentary photography. By conducting a Google search for images of renowned documentary photographers with the additional criterion "Caucasus," Max discovered numerous pictures of ordinary people in social media and on forums .

The black and white filter applied to the selected photographs is a symbol of classic documentary photography. Emphasizing in this way the "documentability" of his photos in the ordinary consciousness, Max turns to the experience of the 19th century, when photography served as a tool for documenting the research activities of scientists.It was around this time that the Caucasus was flooded with explorers who helped "integrate" the numerous conquered peoples of the Caucasus into the Russian Empire. Moreover, Max made a story based on his never-existed trip, which was dubbed in audio while the "artifact" photos hung in frames behind the glass. For documentarians of that era, the truth was quite unequivocal. Documentary photography retains its elitist, unique status, as do many other stereotypes of the past. Possessing the pretentiousness of "exposing" reality, documentary photography still serves as irrefutable evidence for many. One question remains: what do we want to prove? And to whom?