Personality & Working Conditions

Project

Personality & Working Conditions

(2009-ongoing)

Project Statement – Intro

I am researching the topic of “Personality and Working Conditions.” The project approaches the theme using photography, video and installation. The photography series explores the oppressive dimension of uniformity at work in particular business fields. Furthermore, it looks at the way this might impact an employee’s personality, the different and competing roles an employee might encounter, as well as their consequences. In addition, an attempt is being made to visualize an exhaustion for the status quo and the desire to change. Nowadays, as the line between work and exploitation becomes ever more uncertain, this is an area that urgently calls for attention in all fields including artistic practice.

IMAGES

The images are largely based on my personal experiences, part of which are, working for various corporations as well as from field research I have conducted in the form of audio and video interviews; the participants were former colleagues of mine and employees from different professions. They also describe the certain ideological pressures I encountered. Moreover, a visual exploration is attempted on how these experiences might be interpreted to create a story using photography as expanded collage with actors and post-production. In my field research in Greece, I have encountered many instances where people feel exploited; with these individuals giving accounts of how their personality is limited or endangered when confronted with the ideological structures of corporate giants. Employees have to alter their personality in accordance with the corporation’s desires and policies.

VIDEOS

Part of the videos explore the difference of perception employees might have concerning everyday notions related with the workplace and how films can be incorporated in order to build dialectics, between perceived reality and fantasy. Another part – experimental in nature – seeks to highlight the process of altering ones physical appearance – due to work policies – and the impact this might have on personality.

The above video is an excerpt from a larger video on the same theme. The complete video is 18min55sec long. If you wish to see it all you can do so by clicking here.

INSTALLATION

The installation – an extension – of the project, challenges the very limits of personality, by detaching self from self.

Detachment of self from self