The Ghosts of Documentary (2012)

In this essay, Solomon-Godeau continues her investigation of the epistemological, ethical, and political problem of documentary. She examines how changing technologies have affected truth claims in various manifestations of “documentary” photography. Such an inquiry requires distinguishing particular practices from a range of representations—journalism to social documentary—all anchored by the presumed evidentiary and indexical nature of photography. But if one steps away from the notion of documentary as a genre implying political intent and considers it as a style, as many scholars have argued, Solomon-Godeau observes that it remains alive and well (which is by no means to say that she endorses it). These recent manifestations of documentary, some of which are assimilated into artistic networks and markets, are haunted by the eclipse of evidentiary certainty but simultaneously entranced by the artistic prospects digital tools offer.