Enchanted world : a visual investigation into the space of seduction

To be seduced is to be preoccupied, absorbed or enchanted by someone or something to the point where ones individual identity dissolves into nothingness. It is an opportunity to have a break from the pressures and circumstance of one's life, in fact of one's entire being. And yet the experience of seduction, like all experience is unsustainable and fleeting. Seduction operates within a psychological space that is separate to that of everyday reality. This research project is an investigation into extending seduction beyond the limits of the original ephemeral moment through visual imagery. Its aim has been to develop visual languages through which to suggest the psychological space of seduction with specifics from lived seductive experiences being used as the vehicle for instigating this. These moments have become part of performative scenarios that have been activated after the original seductive experience has ended. These scenarios are termed secondary seduction. The documentation of these experiences forms the artwork, which is presented as books, digital prints, sound, and video. The artwork has been contextualised through a written discussion of recent art practice. The exegesis specifically references artists working with the cross over between personal and public space, performative interactions within the real world and the use of text within visual art practice. Within the exegesis seduction has been discussed with reference to the writing of Jean Baudrillard and in terms of personal experiences of seduction. In conclusion, the impetus for this investigation has been to extend seduction beyond the confines of the initial fleeting experience. That the exhibited artwork suggest the psychological space of seduction and thereby have the potential to prompt an audience's own memories of seduction.