Simulacrum and The Ship of Theseus

Introduction

In today's lecture we discussed simulacrum, the idea that we are experiencing superficial versions of things that we believe are truthful versions of things, this got me thinking about the point in which something becomes "false".

Often, paintings fade over time, they get damaged and it is no longer possible to view the art piece in all of it's glory, so artists are commissioned to paint over it and restore the painting, but if we view a restored painting, are we really viewing the painting or are we viewing a likeness of the painting? To answer this question, we must first understand the difference between simulation and simulacrum, in today's lecture we looked at Jean Baudrillard's theories and attempted to create meaning from it.

Simulation

dictionary.com definition
imitation or enactment, as of something anticipated or in testing.

Simulacrum

dictionary.com definition
a slight, unreal, or superficial likeness or semblance.

Example Difference

As news reporting was created, people would take videos of France and send it to the news company, the reporters would then take this information and create stories, these would then be broadcast it to the public.

One day, a film maker who had never left England decided to create a movie set in France using the knowledge he had gathered from the news, because of this he has created a world that he believes is simulating France, but the reality is that he has created a world based on version of France that was in turn created from someone else's findings, making his movie a simulacrum, not a simulation.

Art Restoration Conclusion

I took to the internet to find discussion on the matter, from these talks I feel I have gained an understanding on the subject. When art is restored, over time it creates a "Ship of Theseus", rather than a simulacrum, which one reddit users describes as:

stairway2evan, reddit
a new object that simulates the original, but has been made, little by little, of new parts until none of the original remains

Other users went on to discuss that what was important wasn't that the original oil painting remained on the canvas, but that we celebrate and appreciate the inspiration that allowed his art to be created, as long as the restoration experts painstakingly match the brushstrokes, colours and techniques used, all of the artists intentions remain and that's what we visit the museum to appreciate.