Michael Taussig\u2019s \u201cI Swear I Saw This\u201d<\/p>\n
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This is my reflection on an article<\/a> written about the underestimated value of drawing and sketching alongside field notes and how this very much relates to our studies this quarter.\u00a0 Michael Taussig, the author of Pearls<\/em>, released a book in 2011 titled, I Swear I Saw This: Drawings in Fieldwork Notebooks, Namely My Own <\/em>and a professional Anthropologist earlier this year wrote an article highlighting some quotes from his book.\u00a0 This article<\/a> not only contains some inspiring quotes but also got me really exited about adding sketches and drawings to my field notes in the weeks to come.<\/p>\n This quarter in Making Meaning Matter, we each will be playing the role of an embedded journalist, tasked with observing our classmates as they experience 3d design and 3d printing.\u00a0 As we observe, it\u2019s important to document our observations inside of a journal or field notebook for later reflection.\u00a0 This documentation can come in various forms and mediums and Michael Taussig encourages us to add drawings and sketches to our field notes as another ethnographic field method.\u00a0 Below are a few quotes I found relevant to MMM, from the mentioned article, along with a short reflection.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201c\u2026the notebook is actually an extension of oneself if not more self than oneself, like an entirely new organ alongside one\u2019s heart and brain, to name but the more evocative organs of our inner self. What this new organ does is incorporate other worlds into one\u2019s own. Is this not obvious when Benjamin himself states that the genuine collector\u2019s object do not come alive in him, but rather it is he who lives in them?\u201d (105).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Where does one object end and another begin?\u00a0 A journal is an extension of you, your thoughts and observations recorded to be summoned for later reflection.\u00a0 Your journal is the connection between you and those you observe.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201c\u2026photograph is a\u00a0taking<\/em>, the drawing a\u00a0making\u2026<\/em>John Berger\u00a0certainly\u00a0thinks so,\u00a0with this enigmatic notion that a photograph stops time, <\/em>while\u00a0drawing encompasses it<\/em>\u2026\u201d (21).<\/p>\n In a class where we will be \u2018Making\u2019 most of the quarter I thought that the above quote seemed appropriate to share.\u00a0 Taussig explores the idea that photography is an act of \u2018taking\u2019 that stops time and drawing an act of \u2018making\u2019 that encompasses it.\u00a0 By drawing an observation you are making a new interpretation of this observation instead of just taking an exact copy of it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cWe amateurs feel little hesitation in speaking, although we are not professional speakers, just as we run, although we are not professional athletes, make love, swim, or email, et cetera. Most of us even live life amateurishly. But drawing, for the amateur? off limits. Drawing is precious in every sense of the word, except for the Littlies\u201d (33-34).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Many of you, like myself, don\u2019t draw because we just don\u2019t see ourselves as very good at it.\u00a0 It is important to note that we do many things everyday that we may not be the best at.\u00a0 Taussig reminds us that we speak although we are not professional speakers, we run although we are not professional athletes and in fact most of our daily activities are quite amateur.\u00a0 Don\u2019t deprive yourself or others of something that you may not think you are good at.\u00a0 There is value in all expression, draw in your journals, as it is just another interpretation of your observation, an extension of your mind.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I hope this blog post inspires you all to go check out the article<\/a> written about Michael Taussig\u2019s I Swear I Saw This: Drawings in Fieldwork Notebooks, Namely My Own <\/em><\/a>and explore the many other quotes from his book.\u00a0 Lets get excited about our task as Ethnographers and enjoy the many creative methods of recording our observations.\u00a0 A copy of the actual book will on reserve for our class at the library for those interested in the full text.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Michael Taussig’s “I Swear I Saw This” This is my reflection on an article written about the underestimated value of drawing and sketching alongside field notes and how this very much relates to our studies this quarter. 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