Dana Lixenberg, Art or Sociology?
In this essay, I explore the intersections between art and sociology through the work of American photographer Dana Lixenberg, specifically her project "Imperial Courts" (Lixenberg, 2015). This project is neither artist-centred pure art since Lixenberg collaboratively develops the project with participants, nor is it sociology since it fails to follow strict qualitative research methodology or ethical research conduct or set out with research aims. The project sits at the intersection of both subjects and still makes useful insights into both disciplines of sociology and art.
Lixenberg's photographs function as a form of visual sociology, creating a narrative that invites viewers to engage with and interpret the sociological aspects of the community’s life, thus highlighting the complexities in categorising such works within strict disciplinary boundaries. In exploring how Lixenberg’s photography, initially a photojournalistic endeavour, works in the space between sociological context and art, I will consider how her interpretation of the work as an artist impacts the interpretation of her work as a sociological study. In doing this, I will draw from the theories of Pierre Bourdieu, Howard S. Becker and Du Bois.
In thinking about art, it is important to recognise that artistic practice is fluid. Art is a form of human expression encompassing creative and aesthetic endeavours with an autonomous artist (Steiner, 2003), using various media, such as painting, sculpture, literature, music, dance, theatre, film, architecture, and photography. The aesthetic component has altered in its content (Kaur and Dave-Mukherji, 2015), and its medium over time. Much of the work from former colonial lands or working-class communities was considered crafts but is now accepted as art (Ariese-Vandemeulebroucke, Csilla E, and Magdalena Wróblewska, 2022). Similarly, photography was once considered a technical science but is now considered art (Davenport, 1999).
Additionally, at one time, artists were considered autonomous beings detached from society and, therefore, able to make aesthetic objects unaffected by societal norms; writers now highlight this idea that the sovereignty of the self is socially constructed (Kester, 2023). Artistic expression is influenced by and contributes to social dynamics and is made through and supports the social, cultural, and historical.
contexts from which it emerges (Yates, 2016). It is one reason that women, artists of colour, working class and other marginalised artists have argued that no art is independent of society, and all art is political (Gates, Henry Louis, and Gene Andrew Jarrett 2021).
Artists often draw upon their experiences, observations, and the prevailing social conditions of their time to create works that comment on, critique, or celebrate various aspects of society. However, this can only occur if the existing art institutions support this work. Bourdieu’s (1993), concepts, such as habitus, capital, and field, clarify the institutional aspect of artistic production. In the field of cultural production, which includes art, these concepts help explain how artists' backgrounds and societal positions influence their creative output and how this output is perceived and valued within the social world (Bourdieu, 1993). It is helpful to explain how the art canon, including photography, remains overwhelmingly male, consisting of men from Europe. North America. The exclusion of working-class people, women, and people from global majority backgrounds from existing photography art canon can be explained through Bourdieu’s (1993), work. Here, this applies not only to the apparent exclusion of certain demographics from the art canon but also to the exclusion of how they make artwork. Lixenberg does not behave like an autonomous male artist entering working-class black areas and taking photographs but is engaging, caring, and collaborating with her subjects as a woman and someone who resides in the community.
Sociology is the study of social behaviour, institutions, and functions, and can use various methodologies to collate data, including turning to art (Becker, 1995). Artistic works can provide a unique window into different groups' lived experiences, social issues, and identity narratives, and photographs and the making of photographs can be a methodology in visual sociology. Artistic works can also be used to present sociological data, particularly with the living archives of marginalised communities. (Puwar and Sharma, 2012). Puwar and Sharma (2012), highlight the rich history of sociology using art curation, and I will discuss the work of Du Bois in this respect.
In 1993 the Dutch-born photographer, Dana Lixenberg, was commissioned by the Magazine Vrij Nederland to photograph “destruction and rebuilding” after the 1992 Rodney King uprisings (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015). Lixenberg decided to focus on Imperial Courts, a 500-unit housing project located within Watts, Los Angeles. These photographs capture the socio-political context of people on the margins of society living within the area, such as the famous gangs, the Bloods and the Crips, which agreed on a truce in 1993, making the project a visual representation of a community adapting towards a coexistence (Pitts, 2015). Lixenberg’s art is, therefore, embedded in the community and vastly impacted by the social issues affecting that community. As I will show, Lixenberg adapted her approach over time and took more of an educator role, assisting the residents in doing their work and using their voices. Her evolving engagement with the project, transforming it into a self-directed ethnographic study, reflects a shift from the photojournalistic production of knowledge to a more sociologically informed methodology (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015). This change highlights Becker's (1982), perspective on the fluid roles within the 'Art Worlds', where the boundaries between journalism and sociological research are not rigid but permeable and dynamic.
Lixenberg’s work comprises mainly formal portraits of the Imperial Courts residents and occasional environmental shots to display the surroundings of the space (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015). The project’s significance is built on the context of the area being a historical site of contestation, involving racial tension affecting the Afro-American community over many years. It includes a major race riot in 1965 and 1992. In 1965, 34 people were killed, and $40 million in damages took place, and in 1992, police brutally attacked activist Rodney King and the violence in the aftermath resulted in 63 deaths and $446 million worth of damages (Gooding-Williams, 2013). Lixenberg’s photographed in the aftermath of the 1992 riot and Imperial Courts will always be an important historical document of sociological relevance.
In the Imperial Courts project, Lixenberg attended public meetings with local activists such as Tony Bogard, the leader of the housing project (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015), and listened to a counter-narrative to the mainstream media stories which blamed the rioters solely for the violence. The collaboration with Bogard also meant Lixenberg had better access to the community, which other researchers and journalists needed to be improved. In Bourdieu’s terms, Lixenberg's ability to reach the community, despite being a white Dutch woman, can be understood through the lens of her unique habitus (Bourdieu, 1993). This background, while granting her unique entry into the community, also positions her at a specific point in the social space of the field, influencing her approach and the reception of her work (Bourdieu, 1993). Bourdieu’s concept emphasises that her habitus interacts with the field’s structure, shaping her understanding and portrayal of the community. Focusing on individuals rather than general narratives, her approach demonstrates an alternative way of engaging with the community, challenging traditional media portrayals and reflecting Bourdieu's idea of how different agents’ positions within a field affect their practices and perspectives (Bourdieu, 1993).
As she explained herself, “being physically present there moved me deeply. The reality of any explosive situation is always more complex than the mainstream media can convey. I was confronted by people’s individual and collective experiences of a long history of violent events. I became interested in exploring life in the projects through a de-sensationalised approach.” (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015).
Lixenberg's intent can be viewed through Bourdieu's lens as a critical engagement with her own habitus and the dominant practices in the photographic field. Her approach signifies a conscious deviation from the established media narratives, embodying Bourdieu’s concept of agents within a field actively contesting and redefining prevailing discourses (Bourdieu, 1993).
Furthermore, Lixenberg chose to use a 5X4 large format camera to deliberately ‘slow things down’ (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015). This methodical approach allows a thinking process to occur when taking the images and critically engages with the subject matter. The lengthy process allowed Lixenberg to converse, making subjects more connected and engaged. In the context of Bourdieu’s theory, Lixenberg’s approach can be seen as an attempt to bridge the gap between her habitus as an outsider and the life-worlds of her subjects. By slowing down the process, she creates a space that allows for a more nuanced engagement, potentially enabling her to capture the intricacies of the community's social reality. This method reflects a conscious effort to mitigate the limitations imposed by her positionality, striving for a deeper understanding and representation of the community’s experiences. It can be interpreted as an approach that tries to transcend the superficiality often associated with quick, observational photography. Instead, it seeks a more embedded and empathetic connection with the subject matter.
In 2008, 15 years after the start of Imperial Courts, Lixenberg returned to the housing project to see how the neighbourhood had changed (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015). The post-Rodney King areas had been abandoned by the government and needed more restructuring funding, which meant the area declined and inequality increased (Zilberg, 2002). This motivated Lixenberg to photograph the neighbourhood regularly between 2008 till 2015, an eight-year documentation. Working for herself meant that she could develop her focus on the project, leading to a shift from concentrating on a post-riot space to carrying out a full ethnographic project. Consequently, she was allowed to start with the people rather than the politics of the space (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015).
This self-directed ethnographic work, free from media constraints, exemplifies Becker's idea of art as a collective action shaped within a network of social relations (Becker, 1982). Her immersive engagement with the community, focusing on personal narratives over political context, reflects Becker's emphasis on the sociological aspects of art production. Lixenberg's methodology highlights the intersection of artistic creation and sociological research, underscoring the significance of social interactions and collaborative processes in shaping artistic work within a community context.
Howard S. Becker's (1982), 'Art Worlds' concept focuses on the collaborative nature of art production. According to Becker, art is not solely the product of individual talent or genius but the result of collective activity. This theory emphasises that art production involves a wide range of activities by different people, each contributing in their own way. Becker's approach underlines the importance of networks, conventions, and collective activity in creating and disseminating art (Becker, 1982). In analysing Dana Lixenberg's work. As Becker argues, artists often engage in cooperative activities with various agents, such as subjects and community leaders, to produce their work. Lixenberg's collaboration with the community, including residents' contributions and cultural practices, exemplifies this collaborative aspect within the art world, where different agents contribute to creating and disseminating her work (Becker, 1982). This approach transcends traditional photography, reflecting a sociological exploration of identity, culture, and place within a marginalised community. Lixenberg uses artistic methods to do this, using maps to give the perspective of the layout of the housing project. She encouraged residents to submit their drawings of the estate to coincide with local authority plans (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015). Furthermore, she started filming videos and recording audio within Imperial Courts to create different sensorial perspectives for the viewers, and conducted interviews and recorded poems and freestyle raps with residents. She also recorded short clips of residents’ cultural practices to illustrate how they interacted with space on the housing project (Lixenberg and Blankevoort, 2015).
In summary, therefore, Lixenberg was commissioned to carry Imperial Courts out by the Dutch magazine Vrij Nederland, and, therefore, her work is classified as photojournalism, or art, rather than pure sociology. By using Becker’s (1995) work about photography we can understand the importance of Lixenberg as a photojournalist. Vrij Nederland is traditionally an ‘intellectually left wing-wing' paper which
ideologically examines the struggles of the proletariat within the context of riots (Becker, 1995). Lixenberg's positionality as a socially conscious artist plays a pivotal role in her ability to market the story to magazine editors. This positioning, aligned with the magazine's politics, enables her to present her work as artistic and socially relevant. We can see that has the project evolved into a more in-depth exploration of the community, it began to align more with the ethical considerations of sociological research, characterised by informed consent, confidentiality, and a participatory approach with subjects. This shift reflects a change not only in methodological approach but also in ethical orientation.
Nevertheless, Lixenberg's position as an outsider in Imperial Courts, while bringing a unique perspective, raises significant concerns from a Bourdieusian standpoint regarding the adequacy of her positionality. Her background, vastly different from the subjects she documents, casts doubt on her ability to comprehend fully and authentically represent the intricate realities of a marginalised African American community. As Bourdieu might argue, this disconnect is not merely a matter of cultural difference but a fundamental issue of power dynamics within cultural production. The ethical implications of this outsider perspective become increasingly pertinent, questioning the depth of understanding and engagement achieved in her portrayal of the Imperial Courts (Bourdieu, 1993). This critique highlights the limitations of her habitus in bridging the experiential gap between her world and that of her subjects, underscoring the need for a more deeply ingrained, empathetic, and insider-driven approach in documentary photography.
This type of work has a long history in sociology, for example, through the work of WEB Du Bois. The work of Du Bois is vast, covering a broad range of issues from social theory, philosophy, racism, democracy, equality, imperialism, revolution and cultural nationalism, amongst others. The Paris Exposition, or its official title, the Exposition Universelle of 1900, was an international fair held in Paris, France, from April 1900 to November 1900. It aimed to ‘celebrate the past century's achievements and accelerate development into the next.’ (Mahler Foundation, 2021). The work which was shown in the 1900 Paris Exposition was called The American Negro Exhibit. It consisted of a large display of around 100 photographic portraits, patents, books and research presented through graphics showing the achievements of the African American community in the US.
Although we don’t know if the process of curating the exhibition was collaborative or not, we do know the team consisted of a number of creatives, writers, students, designers and researchers. They were composed at a time when Black representation dehumanised the Black subject. Photographs of dead Black bodies by lynching were widely distributed, and in magazines, the representation of Black people was negative. Not only do the photographs provide a different vision of the Black subject, but Du Bois also showed the wide diversity of the US Black community, with different faces, and shades of colour, from white to darker tones of lack. The historian Deborah Willis called the exhibit ‘a New Negro visual aesthetic’ (Deborah Willis-Thomas, 2003). However, there was more to the exhibition than photographs. Alongside the engaging photography were colourful and captivating infographics. Together, ‘the displays and the materials they supported pioneered a new representation of race.
There are two points to highlight here. Firstly, this was a radical shift away from the other representations of Black people at the Exposition. Many of the texts about the Exposition contrasts the curation of Du Bois’s exhibition with its modernist graphics and vibrant colours, the use of maps and dignified black and white formal portraits, to the western exoticisation of Africans and Asians in the other stalls. Secondly, how the stark infographics were displayed alongside the portraits drew people into looking closely at the work and thereby forcing them to engage with a robust rebuttal of racism. For example, one chart compared the rate of illiteracy among Black Americans to that of various European states. In this sense, there was an element of intentional social engagement with the audience.
I would argue here that Lixenberg’s project is part of the similar tradition which intersects sociology and art and that ultimately, "Imperial Courts" is a compelling example of the intersection of art and sociology. It showcases the potential of photography to narrate and analyse social realities, challenging traditional distinctions between artistic and sociological practices. This project displays the importance of a nuanced understanding of cultural production that respects the blurred lines between disciplines and appreciates the multifaceted nature of works at the intersection of art and sociology. However, it is not pure art, nor is it pure sociology. Photography can be a powerful medium for documenting and highlighting various social, cultural, and human aspects of society. Photographers like Lixenberg may use their skills to capture images that convey sociological insights, explore social issues, or tell stories about individuals and communities. While her work may touch upon sociological subjects or themes, it is not sociology in the academic or scientific sense. Therefore, its methodology is useful but would only be making new knowledge in the strict sociological sense if that was the clear research intention from the beginning. However, it does make a compelling document.
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