Brandon Ferry - Body Art & Trauma

A 2010 article by Sophie Anne Oliver entitled "Trauma, Bodies, and Performance Art: Towards an Embodied Ethics of Seeing" discussed how self-reflection should be taken into account when the piece of art is disturbing or has even maimed or injured the person in the photograph. I find this extremely interesting because I, as a viewer, need to take a step back and not only analyze the artistic merit of a piece of art, but also take into consideration the morality of such an art. Should considering morality be part of the self-reflection process when discussing art or should we just objectively view art for what it is? As I grapple with that question, I only feel as if I can gain more of an understanding of art in order to culture myself with various works of art.