“Untitled (Predator Drone)” by Trevor Paglen
Art/Exhibition Review
By: Stephen Ng
To be perfectly honest, if this photograph wasn’t in a museum setting, I would have simply disregarded it entirely. Unbeknownst to the common person, “Untitled (Predator Drone)”, by Trevor Paglen, costs anywhere from $10000 to $15000 [1]. This is an immense amount of money for something that just looks like a gradient of colors. From a very light brown transitioning to a very light blue, I assumed this to be a photograph of a sky. It’s quite hard to tell exactly what time of day this image captures; I’d guess it’d be sometime during the early hours. There is no sun present, just the endless sky and the seemingly endless ground below.
What this predator drone captures is actually quite astounding; it’s the actual embodiment of peace. There’s nothing happening in the picture: no wars, no conflicts, no life, nothing. It’s quite disheartening to think that only predator drones, or rather any unmanned vehicles, can see this scene. Humans must always place themselves in some kind of machinery or technology to get anywhere near this setting, let alone see it with the naked eye. Quite rarely do we ever think about what machines see or what they capture.
It’s quite an ethereal photograph, isn’t it? When I look at it, my mind just clears. The emptiness of the picture starts to fill my mind, to the point of making time slow down.
How about you?
[1] – http://artsy.net/artwork/trevor-paglen-untitled-predator-drone
Hello Stephen. I agree with you completely. I thought similar things that you did when I first saw this photo. It made me really peaceful. However, I also see it as the peace ending because of the fading colors for some reason.
Stephen, its awesome that you ask your reader for her impressions–it shows that you understand collaboration as part of the production of knowledge. Its also cool that you researched the photograph. Why is it that the monetary value changes your impression of the work? Do you think knowing this will change the way you look at photographs you would otherwise think of as simple? In your review you talk about the peace you find in that empty sky–what does it mean that a drone could be lurking in there somewhere?
@Susan
Thanks for commenting! There is no doubt in my mind that this photo does nothing but bring a sense of peace.
@Eversley
Thank you for the comments! I guess the monetary value of this photo really changed my perspective on some art; you really can’t judge a book by it’s cover so to say. There’s always some kind of value behind any piece of art, either sentimental or monetary. In the future, I’d be wary to assume “simple” art has next to no worth. About the drone lurking somewhere in the sky, it might be unsettling to always think about a drone watching you, but I take in the comfort that drones are used more than on spying people.
Stephen Ng
Hey Stephen. As i came across this post I couldn’t help but stare in awe at this seemingly simple gradient that is worth upwards of 15,000 dollars. Quite interesting that people are willing to pay ridiculous prices for something they can create in Photoshop in under a minute. It also got me thinking about the “The Black Square” a painting by Kazimir Malevich which several copies were made of. The fourth copy that he painted, had sold in 2002 for 1 million dollars. (http://www.hermitagemuseum.org/html_En/04/b2003/hm4_1_30_0.html). Just a little food for thought about the value of some things.