Da iconoclastia ao iconoclash, de Bruno Latour

Abstract

In the introductory text to the catalog of the exhibition Iconoclash: Beyond the Image Wars in Science, Religion & Art, curated by Bruno Latour and Peter Weibel and held at the Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe (ZKM) in Germany 2002, Latour coins the term “iconoclash” to contemplate the ambiguity of iconoclastic gestures. These gestures were seen as not only producing an immediate effect of destruction but also generating new images in the fields of religion, science, and the arts. In light of this new interpretation, the article revisits some of the analyses by authors who collaborated on the exhibition catalog, within the field of Arts, that highlight the ambiguity of iconoclastic strategies. The productive power of the iconoclastic gesture is particularly emphasized in the context of modern and contemporary art, where numerous interventions and transformations, whether in the material realm of artworks or in the conceptual and symbolic one, are observed. These interventions raise questions about representation and mediation of reality, pointing towards the exhaustion of certain historical narratives.