Is identity fundamentally something that is constructed as opposed to a humanistic sense of a coherent and stable self? It is a question that literally figures in the photographic works of Peter Harris, Self- Portrait by Proxy III ( The Rizzla Game). Harris presents head shots of himself playing the Rizzla game – a paper bearing an identity is pasted on his forehead and he has to guess who he is by asking questions.
It’s a party game that many of us have played, but by presenting it within the context of a gallery, Harris forces the deeper question: is our sense of identity fixed? Or rather, is it something we build based on our socio-cultural situations, the questions forced on us and the answers we come up with?
Parvathi Nayar, The Singapore Business Times
Shown at:
Touché, Andrew Mummery Gallery, London
5 – 30 September 2000