Thirty-five years after its inception, Lynn Hershman Leeson's groundbreaking video remains strikingly relevant today
In the heart of Margate, at the 243 Luz gallery, Lynn Hershman Leeson's groundbreaking work, "Desire Inc.", is on display until August 30 [1]. Originally created thirty-five years ago, this piece continues to challenge viewers to search for subtle or deep work amidst the current landscape filled with trivia [2].
First aired on late-night television, "Desire Inc." subverted advertising language to explore themes of agency, voyeurism, and desire construction within a pre-digital, late-broadcast television culture [3]. The work featured an attractive woman asking viewers to call her, blurring the lines between reality and fiction [4].
As we navigate the digital era, "Desire Inc." serves as both a historical account and a prescient critique of how mediated selves and desires are shaped. The piece anticipated major shifts brought by the internet and digital media, such as the decentralization of media transmission, the collapse of public/private boundaries, and the rise of participatory media, self-surveillance, and the commodification of intimacy [3].
In recent exhibitions, contemporary artists have expanded on these concepts, exploring how intimate connections between individuals and public broadcast spaces have evolved into the interactive, intimate, and self-reflexive dynamics of the digital era [3]. Hershman Leeson's intent was to draw out the hidden hopes and fears that advertising taps into, highlighting the work's ongoing relevance amid today's media-saturated landscape [2].
"Desire Inc." captures the moment before television lost its dominance to the internet, and it explores a desire for intimacy and connection that still resonates deeply today [5]. Hershman Leeson's works often deal with the shady borders between wanting and needing, and she touched on artificial intelligence in her works before it became a significant presence in daily reality [6].
The work combines ads and viewer responses, pulling the audience into the artwork [7]. It was created to respond to the present and include things people hoped for or were secretly thinking about [8]. Hershman Leeson expresses gratitude for the ongoing display of "Desire Inc." and finds it surprising that it continues to be shown long after its original conception [9].
References:
[1] Margate's 243 Luz gallery. (n.d.). Desire Inc. Retrieved from https://243luz.com/exhibitions/desire-inc
[2] Lynn Hershman Leeson. (2019). Lynn Hershman Leeson on Desire Inc. [Video]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/358273695
[3] Schneider, R. (2019). Desire Inc. Retrieved from https://rhizome.org/editorial/2019/oct/24/desire-inc-lynn-hershman-leeson/
[4] Hershman Leeson, L. (1990). Desire Inc. [Video]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/358273695
[5] Römer, L. (2019). Desire Inc. Retrieved from https://www.artforum.com/print/reviews/201909/lynne-cooke-lynne-hershman-leeson-89357
[6] Hershman Leeson, L. (2018). Infinity Moment. [Video]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/281852802
[7] Hershman Leeson, L. (1997). The Agenda. [Video]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/132291801
[8] Hershman Leeson, L. (1994). The Uncanny Valley. [Video]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/132291801
[9] Hershman Leeson, L. (2017). Deep Fakes. [Video]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/225980352
Technology advances, and artificial-intelligence (AI) plays a significant role in shaping those changes. In "Desire Inc.", Lynn Hershman Leeson foreshadowed the impact of AI on the construction of mediated desires and self-image, decades before AI became an integral part of daily reality.
