Deleuze, Bergson, and a Document Scanner: Investigating Duration and Perception

Abstract

In this arts-based exploration, the author experiments with nonstandard time registers and perception via the possibilities opened up by the unconventional use of a handheld document scanner. Thanks to the technical configuration of the scanner, the artist is able to alter the time period spent on the different aspects of the object as it is scanned, creating images that alter our normalized perception of time. In addition, by directly scanning objects (rather than documents or images), the resultant scan is one of detailed ultraspecificity of parts of the object nearest to the scanner, while the remainder of the objects quickly fade to out-of-focus. Drawing especially on Bergson and Deleuze, the artist explores the theoretical implications of such unconventional duration and microperception.