Flusser and French Theory
Flusser lived in France for roughly the last decade and a half of his life, but he often minimized the influence of French philosophy (or “theory”) on his writing. I would argue, however, that the impact and reception of Flusser’s work relies largely on the avenues opened up by French theory, and that French theory provided a fruitful “model” – one of Flusser’s favorite terms – for his own visionary thinking. Flusser was first celebrated in Germany, where Friedrich Kittler, the most prominent media theorist of his era, embraced his technical image writings. Kittler was informed by recent French theory: Foucault, Lacan, and Derrida. In the U.S., Flusser’s reception was through two avenues, both heavily influenced by French theory: photography theory within art history, and the U.S. art world. This paper traces some of these connections, comparing Flusser to contemporary peers and thinkers like Roland Barthes, Jean Baudrillard, Gilles Deleuze, Michel Foucault, Jean-François Lyotard, Paul Virilio, Guy Debord, and François Laruelle.