From: Marianna Ellenberg (email suppressed)
Date: Sun Apr 08 2007 - 19:45:40 PDT
"THE PLASTIC SELF" Curated by Marianna Ellenberg
as part of the exhibtion "On the Collective for Living Cinema"
at ORCHARD GALLERY
47 Orchard St, (bt Hester & Grand St) D Train to Grand St/F train E Broadway
SATURDAY April 14, 2007, 8PM-10PM,
Price: FREE
Plus Discussion with Artist/Curators Mary Billyou, Lili Chin &
Marianna Ellenberg & Film Provocateur Bradley Eros
This video program examines how the codes of advertising, televisual
language and chemical substances impact our desiring bodies and
selves. Medical terminology and popular metaphor replace each other
as plastic, corporeal and literary selves begin to merge. These
artists explore the territories of the psyche, economies of desire,
and the side effects of the Real—all with a yummy aftertaste!
Including A.P. Komen and Karen Murphy, Marianna Ellenberg, Oriana Fox,
Helki Frantzen , Steve Reinke, Shana Moulton and Elizabeth Subrin.
Plus a special treat from the Prelinger archive.
THE RELAXED WIFE, 13 min, On Film Inc, 1957, Prelinger Internet Archive
A psycho-pharmaceutical industrial treat—a wife coaxes her husband
into trying an early form of anti-anxiety medication. A haunting
precursor to the Prozac Era.
Shana Moulton ELECTRIC BLANKET TEMPLE ALTER (5 min, US/Netherlands, 2005)
As her protagonist navigates the enigmatic and possibly magical
properties of her home decor, Moulton initiates relationships with
objects and consumer products that are at once banal and uncanny.
(-EAI Catalogue)
Oriana Fox THE EMBODIMENT WORKOUT (6 min, US/UK,2005)
I was drawn to the exercise video genre because of the endless
repetition involved in following along to the point of mastery, the
sense of accomplishment provided by this mastery, the physical
exertion, and the endorphin rush of a good workout. (- O Fox, 2005)
A.P. Komen and Karen Murphy PLAY ON, (5 min, Netherlands, 2005)
+ Excerpts from SINCERE-HONEST.COM, (4 min, Netherlands, 2005)
A serenade sung in fragments by nine young men to their unseen
suitors. Each protagonist sings along to the 1980's hit 'Eternal
Flame' by the all-girl band The Bangles.These healthy, sun tanned men
sing about their undying love with varying degrees of ability and
credibility. . We are not shown to whom this 'boy band' are declaring
their affections, however at the end of the song one of the men
comments that he hopes people at home will see him, giving an
enthusiastic thumbs up to Thailand and all it has to offer.
This video was a follow up to the project 'Sincere & Honest', in which
six Thai women expressed their desire to find a Western man,
proclaiming that Western men were more responsible, sincere and honest
than their Thai counterparts. (www.sincere-honest.com)
(-AP Komen & Kren Murphy)
Helki Frantzen "1,2,3" (2 min, US, 2007)
Tick Tock. Tick Tock. A furry parka cradles in the womb. Insomnia +
Ambien = stranger than wonderland.
Marianna Ellenberg WELCOME TO NORMAL (2007, US, 7 min)
You CAN get better! An Exquisite Corpse compendium of hypnotic sounds,
symptoms and neurological side effects. Part instructional video and
part psychedelic Haiku and part mind game — treatment is just around
the corner!
Elisabeth Subrin, SWALLOW (28 min, US, 1995)
Based on accounts of girlhood anorexia, Swallow unravels the masked
and shifting symptoms that define clinical depression. With a densely
layered soundtrack, humorous and painful scenes of potential
psychological breakdown reveal a critical loss of meaning, and the
failure to diagnose mental illness. (VDB catalogue)
Steve Reinke ASK THE INSECTS (8 min, Canada, 2005)
Nine micro-essays on animation and death--with many appearances
including Goethe, Pink Floyd and Bambi--leads to a final encounter and
introduction. (VDB catlaogue)
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For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.