HOME (DECAY) by Jason Hendardy
2023
From the series This is a Test
Flatbed print on acrylic
30 × 40 in
Edition of 1
“Growing up, operating the video camera was a family affair, and I embraced the role of its operator. This is a Test is built upon Hi8 stills I made in my childhood, starting in the late 80s, providing a glimpse into my parents' assimilation from Indonesia into American culture. Building on these are photographs made since 2020, often wrapped in golden light, reflecting on a modern version of Foucault’s ‘disciplinary society’ and revealing how structures may regulate and control us.”
—Jason Hendardy
This is a Test refers to the Emergency Broadcast System messages that aired on American televisions from 1963 to 1997. While these messages were intended to signal national emergencies, they also subtly influenced public perception and instilled a sense of controlled fear. Just as the television screen was a crucial tool to export culture from the West, it also served to maintain order domestically.
Growing up, operating the video camera was a family affair, and Hendardy embraced the role of its operator. This Is A Test provides a glimpse into his family’s assimilation into American culture. Building on these are photographs made since 2020, often wrapped in golden light, reflecting on a present-day interpretation of Foucault’s “disciplinary society” and how structures may regulate and control us.
This is a Test addresses contemporary issues like the American dream, immigration, and family, explored through the filter of visual language. The project tells a story of grappling with identity during assimilation and dissecting intergenerational differences. It speaks to the contemporary feelings of the suffocation of impending catastrophe. This is a test.
Jason Hendardy, born to Indonesian immigrants in the San Francisco Bay Area and currently based in Seattle, creates work that probes the intersection of cultural assimilation, identity, and institutional power. His multidisciplinary practice, while anchored in photography, expands into video, sound, and sculpture, challenging traditional documentary approaches to construct layered narratives that examine the space between personal and collective histories.
Through his investigation of cultural systems and power structures, Hendardy tests the boundaries of visual storytelling, creating work that resonates with both intimate familial experiences and broader sociopolitical narratives. These themes culminate in This is a Test (Gnomic Book, 2024), a Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation Book of the Month selection. His work has garnered recognition from publications including Fisheye Magazine, Musée Magazine, Lenscratch, and Hamburger Eyes. Previously serving as Director of Photography at Breville, Hendardy studied photography and media arts at California College of the Arts and at the time of Lucid Pleasures is currently completing his MFA in photography at the University of Hartford.
Flatbed prints use a large-format printing technology that extends beyond standard inkjet capabilities by allowing direct printing onto a wide variety of substrates not typically associated with standard inkjet printers. These materials range from plastic, paperboard, ceramic tile, acrylic, fabric, to wood.