No One Is Accountable in Taryn Simon’s Detective Story
In her ambitious exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum, injustice seems purely systemic, not the result of individuals behaving badly.
Taryn Simon's exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum, titled "Father Country I Do Love You," starts with two text panels. The first recounts a tale she heard from her father about an intelligence officer she met in Bangkok who died under unclear circumstances. The officer's death could have been due to a tiger attack or Chinese kidnapping.
The second panel presents Simon's brief encounter with a former FBI agent, who shared his stories by phone, text, and in person meetings. This FBI agent became the central figure around whom Simon conducted her extensive research. The exhibition features a replica of the living room of the Bangkok spy, along with thousands of photographs, sculptures, video, and an exhibition design that creates an atmosphere reminiscent of the replica living room.
Throughout the exhibition, Simon connects stories and people, historical events, and bureaucratic structures in a manner that appears both implausible and undeniably authentic. However, by beginning with her father's unverified stories, Simon maintains a sense of skepticism throughout the exhibit. The FBI agent's work involved investigating numerous significant events of his time, including the TWA Flight 800 explosion in 1996, the 9/11 attacks on the Pentagon, al-Qaeda's bombing of the U.S. embassy in Nairobi in 1998, DC Mayor Marion Barry's arrest on drug charges in 1990, and Bill Clinton's impeachment.
Written by urgent.news from Hyperallergic's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
