Seite 572 [572]
OCR
570 Violeta Periklieva, Ivaylo Markov Visualization of Policies of Cultural Memory Construction Introduction According to Anthony Cohen, history is extremely malleable and its recalling is based on interpretative reconstruction (Cohen 1995: 99-101)—that is on the creation of “cultural memory”, in the terminology of Jan Assmann (2011). Cultural memory refers to the collective memories of a shared past transmitted from generation to generation within a bigger or smaller social group and to the collective recollection and the process of remembering an event or person from the past (Misztal 2003: 13). The process of remembering is inevitably influenced by the specific context—this is what Maurice Halbwachs (1925) calls a “social framework” of collective memory. In this sense, remembering depends on the “space” in which it occurs, therefore on the momentary aspirations of the remembering subject. Hence, memory is a function of social power, and its expression varies with the social settings in which people find themselves (Bourdieu 1986: 69-72). Thus, cultural memory is not only what people really remember through their own experience but it also incorporates the constructed past, which is constitutive of the collectivity: it refers to human memories constructed from cultural forms and to the cultural forms available to the people when constructing their attitudes toward the past. These cultural forms are transmitted through various media—social institutions and cultural artefacts, such as memorial complexes, monuments, paintings, souvenirs, movies, music and so forth (Misztal 2003: 12-13). Cultural memory is also related to specific cultural practices, commemorations, ceremonies, festivals. In reference to this, Pierre Nora coins the term few de mémoire, which may refer to any place, object, or concept vested with historical significance that denotes, simultaneously or separately, the three aspects of memory: the material, symbolic, and functional (Nora 1989). In addition, the importance and the role of teachers, writers, painters, and even researchers as bearers and distributers of cultural memory should be stressed. Therefore, the memory for the past emerges in strong connection to the communication and interaction in the frame of a social group. Upon their transmission, the cultural forms, objects and sites of memory most often take visual form or material expression. Visualization is one of the most powerful mechanisms for transmitting messages and ideas, for emotional impact and suggestion, for constructing cultural memory and attitude towards the past. Based on this theoretical frame, the chapter presents an example of construction and maintenance of cultural memory through purposeful cultural policies transmitted through various media and having diverse visual and material ex
