A Matter of Perspective - Jan Novotny’s Continuum of Being
A section of Jan Novotny’s Continuum of Being
Written by Yang Lim
“I believe our open contemplation of an image can unlock previously inaccessible knowledge, memories, perceptions, or perhaps understanding of reality.” - Jan Novotny (Edmonton Journal article)
With an avid interest in photography from a young age, Jan Novotny emigrated from Prague in 1968 and settled in Canada, where he continued to pursue his artistic practice. His ongoing interest in social issues and the possibilities of human connection are reflected in his recent work Continuum of Being — a 4 x 48-foot mosaic of 120 photographs that provides a moving portrait of human society. Novotny encourages people to reflect critically on what they know about other cultures and societies around the world and to open their minds to unfamiliar perspectives, even if those may contradict or not align with what they already know.
Novotny’s mosaic provides a composite portrait of human life with its scenes of people in a variety of cultural and societal contexts such as Edmonton, elsewhere in Canada, and abroad. Arranged in a grid-like format, the photos cover diverse subject matter and reveal striking contrasts through their spatial juxtapositions and thematic contrasts. Several photos depict tourists in other countries and visitors attending a cultural event in their home countries, with some photos appearing to be from Edmonton’s annual Heritage Festival. As a celebration of the world’s diverse cultures, the festival features food, live entertainment, cultural displays, and merchandise for sale, with several cultural associations participating. One photo shows indigenous dancers giving a performance, while another shows two people dressed up as pharaohs in front of the Egypt pavilion. A third photo appears to show a tourist who photographs a group of Korean dancers posing in front of a backdrop of a pagoda. Novotny’s work also shows tourists relaxing, sightseeing, and taking selfies in places such as the beach, carnival, and attractions in other countries.
Although these experiences could contribute to communal vibrancy and positive cultural exchange, Novotny also critiques the superficial interactions and limited understandings that potentially arise through such encounters by juxtaposing those images with everyday scenes from those same communities. In stark contrast to the sanitized, controlled scenarios of cultural celebration and interaction that people may be comfortable with, Novotny’s other photos of the general populace reveal the grittiness of community streets, unpredictability of everyday life, and real material circumstances that characterize people’s lives. There are photos such as locals walking through a street market, a man riding a motorcycle on a dirt road, a woman selling arts and crafts on the street, a man tending his herd of cows, young people having a drink, and a young boy walking barefoot around an impoverished neighbourhood.
Similar contrasts arise from juxtaposed elements within individual photos as well as in relation to adjacent photos, which are accentuated by Novotny’s effective spatial placement. For example, one column of images has a photo of two tourists sitting next to a historical monument, while a local man who does not appear to be very well-off sits on the pavement beside a building nearby. Adjacent to this photo are two contrasting images. In one, several tourists amble around cobblestone streets and shop in a city’s tourist district, while another depicts a female cleaner who sits on some city steps to take a break from her work. Similarly, a particularly striking contrast arises within an individual image that shows a young woman photographing a scenic body of water, while a local couple walks by it without a second glance. These examples highlight how people’s different perspectives will impact the meaning and significance that is ascribed to the same material reality. In addition, it asks us, as viewers, to question what we know about other cultures and the extent to which our knowledge is superficial rather than underpinned by a deeper appreciation and understanding about those people’s lives.
Novotny’s photographic techniques enhance his work’s aesthetic impact. The work’s photos consist of two or more individual images that are combined into a single frame: these include images that are repeated within the same frame as well as images from the same scene that are combined into one composite work. These photographic manipulations draw attention to the constructed nature of photography and the shifting nature of the contexts that it captures. Since photographs capture something at a given point in time, they are constructed representations of reality that are fleeting and unique, even though they can provide valuable perspectives on that past. Eliciting curiosity through their creative representations of reality, these images nudge people to question their own perspectives about other societies. They invite people to become more self-aware about their assumptions, values, knowledge, and experiences that impact their understanding of those works, which may lead to questions such as: What are the stories and lives of people that lie behind the impressions that we acquire through the media, travel, or curated experiences of other cultures?
As a whole, the images in Novotny’s work create a collective representation of “being” that is intended to represent the entire world. As suggested by his work’s title, humanity’s “continuum of being” is a shared experience that becomes endowed with meaning and significance by the people who inhabit those respective realities, whether as locals, tourists, or transient individuals. Behind the touristy renditions and popular impressions of places are the real lives of people whom others may not, or choose not, to see. The images reveal stark contrasts between the superficial and kitschy elements of visiting a place and the rugged, dusty, and real material circumstances that shape people’s lives. Nevertheless, a sense of dignity and positive affirmation of these people permeates this work, along with a sense of interconnectedness among people that transcends geographical borders and knits everyone together into a global continuum of human experience.