Document/Capture
Documentation is never a neutral act. When Martens meticulously recorded his observations, he was simultaneously preserving knowledge and constructing a specific narrative. The act of capturing becomes an interpretive process, where selection is inherently political. What is deemed worthy of documentation reveals as much about the documenter as the documented. In colonial travel journals, this often meant privileging European perspectives, scientific curiosity, and potential economic value while overlooking or intentionally erasing indigenous knowledge systems and lived experiences.
Documentation is never a neutral act. When Martens meticulously recorded his observations, he was simultaneously preserving knowledge and constructing a specific narrative. The act of capturing becomes an interpretive process, where selection is inherently political. What is deemed worthy of documentation reveals as much about the documenter as the documented. In colonial travel journals, this often meant privileging European perspectives, scientific curiosity, and potential economic value while overlooking or intentionally erasing indigenous knowledge systems and lived experiences.