Fatih Holland
Touchscreen, 19.05.2020
For the HEK Net Works series, New York-based American artist Faith Holland had created a new GIF, which focused on the theme of distance due to isolation and the desire, or frustration, of the sense of touch that is replaced by virtual online encounters. The GIF was visible from 19.5 to 26.5.2020 here: http://faithholland.com/touch/touch.html
Holland’s work focuses on deconstructing images of sexual bodies in popular culture. In particular, Holland practices a feminist re-appropriation of pornographic imagery through a fetishization of technology as a performative and subversive act. Her work includes performances, videos, installations, and thematic websites. GIFs are an important part of her work, of which the Visual Orgasms series is exemplary. These are a colourful and joyful metaphorical visualization of orgasms in multiple forms, such as abundance of waterfalls and fireworks.
Statement by the artist:
"In Touchscreen, different
hands reach out to touch the camera. It appears that they rub up against
the screen itself, but they are simulating touching you. With these
caresses, the viewer and the screen are collapsed; we are asked to
identify with a flat, unfeeling piece of glass. In this new environment
where touch has become dangerous, we accept this simulation more
willingly, just like the simulations of parties, meetings, and classes."