ABSTRACT
The interweaving of documentary and fiction is not limited to the presentation, narration, or communication of historical content; it already permeates the research and processing of sources, data, and discourses: the work on the archive of history. The archive as a site of production and discourse is at the centre of a well-known project by Lebanese–US artist Walid Raad that was first prominently shown at documenta 11 in 2002. The impossibility of directly observing and coming to terms with the “missing” Lebanese wars leads only to detours, to narratives that proliferate around actual events without actually directly touching upon them. The choice of history painting therefore goes beyond an interest to actualise a historical genre. Schmidt has designed history painting that intertwines “names” and “events” leaving omissions where gaps cannot be filled.
