A Case for Pretending: Why Identity Is a Sham and Authenticity an Illusion
The tighter we cling to any aspect of self-identity, the more we suffer and the more vital it becomes to release our grip.
Amir Zaki
Amir Zaki is a Professor of Art specializing in Photography and Digital Technology at UC Riverside, where he has taught since 2000. In addition to his active art practice, exhibiting regularly nationally and
internationally, Zaki is interested in both Eastern and Western philosophical and contemplative schools of thought, which heavily inform his writing about culture, identity, and the self. Zaki is the author of three photographic monographs, including 'California Concrete: A Landscape of Skateparks' and 'Building + Becoming', a survey monograph spanning 23 years of the artist's work and which was awarded the PubWest award for best Photography Book Design in 2022.
Zaki recently published "Being Without Race" with the Journal for Free Black Thought. He has an upcoming essay, "Why we camp…and why we don't" scheduled to be published in early
August on the Front Porch Republic.
Does Representation Really Matter?
I don’t need to see my likeness reflected in the world because I am already both “represented” by and reflected in the richness of humanity, and more importantly, I actively “represent” a potential for others too.
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