The Concept of False Memory in the Context of Relationship Between Space and Memory in the Visual Arts

In this study, the concept of false memory is discussed through the relationship between space and memory. The reconstructive character of memory is analysed in the context of its relationship with space. The reflection of the concept of false memory, which is a cultural construction in autobiographical narrative, in the field of visual arts is examined. The study has begun by exploring the historical relationship between space and memory, drawing on Halbwachs and Nora's theoretical ideas. Botticelli's Adoration of the Magi and Poussin's Et in Arcadia Ego have analyzed as examples of memory spaces created with the medium of painting. Beuys and Boltanksi's writings offer light on theorists' interpretations of false memory, including Loftus, Bartlet, and Bridge. The primary goal of this research is to investigate the relationship between space and memory in visual art and to examine the concept of false memory. The main problem of the research is how false memories are formed, to what extent they transform and shape space and memory, and how this concept is visualised in artistic terms. According to the results of the study, the artists use the concept of false memory in their artworks to make viewers question their perceptions and memories, while the concept is visualised through the use of spatial installations, transforming images and compositions that alter the perception of reality. It is possible to mention that false memories, like original memories, need a space, and that the space to which memories are attached in their reconstruction is ideally constructed.