Zuma #35 1978

John Divola made "Zuma #35" using photography, capturing a staged scene of decay. The composition reveals a room marked by vandalism and a peculiar aesthetic intervention, the space feels contaminated. The walls are covered in a pattern of white and red spots that evoke both a sense of playful polka dots and something more sinister, like blood spatter. Divola's work here engages with the idea of manipulated reality, playing with the tension between documentation and fiction. The added spots and the vibrant coloured panel seem to mock the act of artistic creation itself, highlighting the artificiality inherent in any representation. This approach can be seen as a critique of the photographic medium's claim to objectivity. Through this layering of elements, Divola destabilizes traditional notions of space and perception. The image serves as a semiotic puzzle where the meaning is not readily apparent but emerges from the interplay between the derelict setting and the superimposed artistic gestures, questioning the role of photography in constructing our understanding of reality.