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The gap introduced through this process ultimately results in a vision very close to the original reportage while seemingly preserving the critical dimension of the initial approach: namely, highlighting the collateral damage of mass tourism. In the end, can this "fake" series also achieve the goal of the original project—to describe a situation in order to critique it?
This question echoes a similar issue I had previously explored when creating a "pictorial print" of these same images through commissioned work by artisan painters (see here). That process introduced a different kind of distance from reality, but isn’t a photograph itself already an interpretation subject to doubt?
Ultimately, what is the reasonable, acceptable, and appropriate distance from reality that aligns with intent? To me, these questions remain open.