Introducing Robert William Overweg

Between Subjectivity, Technology and Photography

Abstract

This paper examines the photographs of the young Dutch artist Robert William Overweg. In doing so, the topics of subjectivity, his technique, metaphor and technology are addressed. His photographs are primarily framed by theories proposed by Roland Barthes, Jacques Lacan and Jean Baudrillard. Overweg's photographs are seen as symbolic structures to be interpreted just as the 'postmodern' subject is. Furthermore, the relation between unconscious knowledge, metaphor and intertextuality is examined by way of analyzing Overweg's work. This begins from the assertion that technology and photography are inherently interrelated.