Click for a PDF virtual exhibition.
This experimental visionary exhibition is presently only online. Nevertheless, I have a future vision of an installation, which would include besides video projection, also felt wrapped simultaneous nude performance. A comupter screen on the pedestal in front of a woven structure covered with black cloth.
The structure would be ten feet tall at the entrance, which would be shaped as an arch. This height would then gradually descend to the ground, and it would be twelve feet long. The computer in the front would be hooked to the projector inside, which would project the images in the ‘little cave’. Sound would come from the bottom from two speakers placed at the entrance in each corner. While the images could be seen on the computer screen, they would become distorted in the curved place inside the projector area. In front of the computer would be a sculpture of a stylized duck- looking at the screen. The orange felt wrapping would be enough to cover the body around the waist. The performer would move around – watching. The expressions on his face would be one of amazement, wonder, and bewilderment. On the computer screen, there would be all the video clips running in a constant loop with only one audio at the time, with an addition of two prerecorded soundtracks. One soundtrack is a synthesizer organ with different rhythms, and melodies with human sounds in the background. The other is a loop of: “ Mind the gap between the train and the platform.” The video clips are looped and are then looped again as different configurations, shuffled like cards, which creates a variety of collages, by mixing them.
It consists of seven clips from feature movies, one from a short drama, two videos, and one audio/video installation. These works encompass a period from Sergio Leone's "Per Qualche Dollaro in piu" from 1965 to 1997 "Pipilottis Fehler" from Pipilotti Rist.
Otherwise, it also includes several works from both a Spanish director Luis Bunuel and Czech New Wave director Vera Chytilova. One might rightly ask what is the link among all these quite diverse artists? The most simple answer is that they are all part of my illusional world with which I am creating a tapestry of images and voices to create an artificial world - that does not exist. At the same time it questions reality itself. Most importantly it is a process of self exploration, and an attempt to link the various artists in a cohesive body of work, which aside from its differences have many deep connections.
There are direct connections between Rist’s work and Chytilova. Rist has acknowledged on many occasions the influences of Chytilova in particular the very acclaimed and revolutionary work called‘ Sedmikrasky’. Rist is a self-proclaimed feminist, in fact she said in one of her interviews, "Naturally I view myself as a femenist. Every normal, healthy woman today has to do that. […] But I would never say that I create feminist art because that does not exist.” (Soll 75). While this is true, that women who assume authority in a certain field are continuously stumbling against patriarchal hierarchy, at the same time, it is the changing of ones consciousness, which produces a more harmonious relationship between the two sexes. She clarifies this in another article, “ I would like to find a woman who would exemplify how one can survive the feminist discussion without becoming nuts.” (Ross 7). Of course, this does not exclude feminism as a valid tool to increased awareness of just how pressing the issues are of being properly understood and treated equally. While doing her best to become one of the most prominent directors in her country, Chytilova bumped against engraved believes in her country, which was at the time the old Czhekoslovakia. As they came under the strict rule of the Soviet Union, in the late sixties, it became obvious, that her radical ideas will not be accepted with the open arms by the ruling Communist Party. At the same time, her works received wide acclaim in the West, and she has apparently managed to influence many people, amongst them – Pipilotti Rist. I myself recently found her movie ‘Sedmikrasky’ in a video store, after that I saw some of Rist’s work - the connections were clearly there. I knew Rist must have been familiar with her work. As I suspected, Rist is a fan of Chytilova, and in her recent exhibition at the MoMa in New York, she has with the permission from Chytilova, shown ’Sedmikrasky’ in conjuction with her exhibition.
What are these relationships in their works? There is a clear concern to offer a new understanding of the feminine, which is always very enigmatic, beautiful and filled with paradox. Equally, both women address the issues of how women still today don’t receive enough accreditation for all their immense contribution, which is more often then not overlooked. Aside from these obvious parallels, there is this clearly Dadaist touch in both artist works. As they both use similar mediums: film and video, and while they differ in the usage of these mediums, in a sense that Cyhtilova uses it to be more narrative, and Rist is more expressive, their devotion to usage of film/video in its purest and crudest form is unmistakable. The use of mistakes in Rist’s ‘Pipilottis Fehler’ and the disturbances, which are neatly woven in Chytilova’s work, such as the ’Fruit of Paradise’ is yet another such notable link between the two.
The use of looped audio is prevalent in installation work, but it is hard to overlook the similar use of sound with both artists. Both are taking advantage of tonal sounds, which evoke emotional feelings in the viewer, they both use the strength of sound as incredible amplifier of color and image. The use of drums in ‘ Sedmikrasky’ as well as Rist’s ‘ Pipilottis Feheler’ accentuates and anticipates every frame. Rist has expressed in on of her interviews, that all of her boyfriends had exceptional musical collections, and many were musicians. While in school and into her early carrier as an installation artist she was a member of a band “Les Reines Prochaines”.
While they use collage techniques differently, they both use it extensively with an amazing ingenuity. Chytilova and Rist are both also very concerned with the body, which is continually used as an exciting, thought provoking, sometimes shocking tool to wake us up. They attempt to connect us- the viewer- to ourselves and our bodily experience. When recently asked what kind of response did she expect from ‘Closet Circuit’, a toilet camera installation, which literally shows you your ‘behind in action’, she simply said,
"I expected them to enjoy it as much as I did. We’ve received only positive
feedback from people of all ages, from good to enthusiastic. The pictures from the
infrared camera have very soft contrast and that makes it easy for users to become
comfortable with it. Suddenly, your second face is smiling at you." (Soll 134)
We all have bodies, with which we can relate to their work, it is a universal part of our existence. The possibilities of applying pattern to the body, and using it as a pattern for our own discoveries- is universal. It is with this principle of the body, that they are able to evoke in us the most primitive feelings, emotions, and thoughts about ourselves.
Bunuel and Leone on the other hand are two classical film directors. While Leone hasn’t experimented as much as Bunuel, who made many surrealistic films, and had some of the elements of surrealism in most of his movies, if we set aside the ones he did for financial reasons. Nevertheless, his movies show a surprising depth, considering the style of a ‘Cowboy Western’. In his book about ‘Spaghetti Westerns’, Frayling points to an important part about Leone’s cinema. First, that “ Leone’s westerns constitute a form of cinema about cinema,” that the films are about westerns, not about the West; and second, that Leone and other Italian directors did, after all, base their work on the real world, that they were concerned with aspects of American history in which Hollywood had rarely shown interest.”(37). As far as Bunuel, in his book John Baxter describes the furor and recriminations dealt to Bunuel and the surrealist movement after the first release of L’Age d’Or. Richard Pierre Bodin from the Figaro said he would ‘defy any technician to find the faintest artistic value’ in L’Age d’ Or. ‘Our Country, the Family and Religion are here trailed in the mud,’ he said (118). Both Un chien andalou and L’ Age d’ Or, were heavily criticized by the existing media, and “[…] Un chien andalou had become one of the cultural ‘sights’ of Paris. When Henry Miller arrived the following March, he visited Studio 28 on his first Sunday.” (Baxter 94).
They were skilled directors and screen writers, who had a clear idea what they wanted. They knew how to come to the source of narration, and were both masters of great shooting angels, excellent framing shoots, and most importantly, a very simple approach with which they were able to tell a lot in a very short period of time. While they were both critics of society, Bunuel has used such criticism extensively towards the Catholic Church and the bourgeoisie. Bunuel was also concerned with fetishes throughout his life. While Leone made gagster movies and so called ‘spaghetti westerns’- with great acclaim.
For this exhibition my point of departure was to juxtapose two powerful woman artist/director against just as powerful somewhat ‘macho’ directors, and create a certain amusing surrealistic dreamlike utopian world, which doesn’t exist. This is were I could say, that the link between all the artists is just this dreamlike quality, as even Leone’s ‘Per Qualche Dollaro in Piu’ evokes this time which is quite remote, but yet familiar bullying men, which will go to the end to retain their status & power. Clearly Rist, Chytilova, and Bunuel don’t lack in those qualities. It is here, that I want to mention what Andre Breton once said about surrealism, he said:“ A terrorist act is the simplest expression of surrealism.” Indeed, those words haunted Bunuel for years to come, as he continued to insert random terrorist acts in his movies. What fascinated him is, that terrorism became a much more common occurrence in the everyday life. And so it is that today, life as we know it, truly is hard to comprehend, and is intertwined with surreal dream like qualities.
The question is what are all these phenomena a product of: our speedy lifestyles, globalization, not being in our bodies, and of course a constant struggle to survive, perhaps. We can ask ourselves what are we truly at the core of our beings? I don’t believe we might find any easy answers, although I sincerely trust that these four artists have uncovered some of our blindness, complacency, and madness. This is certainly part of Rist’s preoccupation, when she tries to point us in a new direction, offers a perspective, and most of all leave us with a little bit of hope, that we are not completely lost and that there is a future for us somewhere in our humanity. Furthermore, the question continues whether any of our mental and physical struggle really truly exists. While it may well be true, that many of us are experiencing it, it certainly isn’t correct to assume. Instead, we are constantly relearning it, and we are not willing to change. It was my goal to seriously question ourselves through these four artists, and engage ourselves in a dialog with their language, which often borrows from the subconscious to come closer to a place of awe. How much we really don’t know? And, how important it is to continue our process?
Do we want to shoot our demons like Clint Eastwood swiftly dispatches with his enemies? Or can we believe it is possible to smash windows with a flower, and still receive a grin of approval from a policewoman? Even further, can man and women live together and empower each other- live without prejudice- and find a way to give more to each other, instead of continually impoverishing the once who have nothing to begin with? These are all the questions, which are being raised by these brave artists, and their vision can only become true because it is not. Perhaps, we do live just half asleep in stupor of our constant struggle for survival, greed and desire- instead we forget to inspire each other.
In a way all the processes, which are necessary to create art are important to look at. When Rist was asked, “ Why are so many artists pointing cameras into orifices these days, and how do you explain this phenomenon?” Rist answered:
"I think very few artists are doing that; I wish there were more. But related to me, I think his observation is incorrect. My camera does not enter the body.
The body turns itself inside out, moving closer to the camera in the process. With regard to all artists, I think that there aren’t enough of them “pointing” their cameras into the body. In my case, people reject themselves when they reject these pictures. He probably didn’t even sit on the toilet."(Soll 134).
