body, the damp warmth which soils my shirt, nor all this warm fat which turns lazily, as if somebody were stirring it with a spoon […]3 Despite the sensation of bodily discomfort and estrangement expressed by Sartreʼs protagonist Roquentin, this text serves to underline an intrinsic link between embodiment and existence.
With the advent and exponential growth of the digital and the virtual, however, the relationship of the physical to reality is problematised, with emphasis shifting away from tangible embodiment in favour of the impalpable virtual world. Where does this leave us, then, in our relationships both with our own bodies4, and with those of others? Does a previously unimaginable ease of communication enhance the possibilities for togetherness, or does it in fact have an isolating effect upon individuals? Conflicts arise as residents of an increasingly globalised society desire, conversely, an ever more ʻindividualisedʼ mode of living. Texts from Roland Barthes, Susan Sontag, Jean Baudrillard, Paul Virilio and many others provide useful critical reference points alongside this discussion.
The prolific recent work of sociologist Zygmunt Bauman, in which he coins the term ʻliquid modernityʼ, has also been a major source in analysing the implications of my topic within todayʼs society. Bauman posits that society has evolved into what he terms ʻliquid modernityʼ. The liquid modern society is one lacking in the fixed social and personal models of the past, resulting in a fluid and often chaotic set of goals and values, held by individuals with conflicting desires for both liberation and security.
So: why discuss this topic with reference not simply to aspects of society as a whole, but to art - or more accurately the arts, as although my primary focus will be on fine art, I will also make reference to aspects of literature, theatre, dance, music and
3
Jean-Paul Sartre, Nausea, p.144 Vis-à-vis Cartesian dualism, for the purposes of this discussion I will approach mind and body as being intrinsically linked, as opposed to adopting a solipsistic stance. 4
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