In
Focus LiveBox
Program 1: “Didn’t
Cha Know” 20:45 min
This selection of work is a playful look at contemporary narratives.
All the artists deploy humor and tap into the mundane moments of life.
“Home Made”, 2004, 4:50
David Lachman, USA
An evening of one man enjoying Ben and Jerry’s cookie dough
ice cream
“In My Mind I am in NY”,
2005, 9:45
Rachelle Viader Knowles, Canada
This work weaves together three strands of narrative about the life
of Bernie Flaman, who 'in his mind he lives in New York.' On the left
hand screen Bernie is at home in his Regina condo, showing us aspects
of his downtown, urban life. On the right hand screen, we see him
at his family farm in Southey – his 'upstate getaway’.
On the screen in the middle we are on the move, in between, drifting
through Saskatchewan.
“Flower to Flower”, 2004,
6:50
David Lachman, USA
A childhood experience of bee petting remembered in voice over, while
a contemporary footage of bee petting is shown
Program 2: “Knots
and Crosses” 7:24 min
The videos in this selection are short, sharp and witty.
"Aktion", 2003, 1:00
Irina Botea, Romainia (living in USA)
Reduced food packages breathing and squeaking like pets.
“Gate Vision”, 2005, 5:24
Kazuhiko Kobayashi, Japan
Imagery for Gate Vision was photographed from the window of the Shinkansen
shopping district of Tokyo. The photographed images are circularly
processed using computer manipulation.
“Cup”, 2006, 4:00
Thom van der Doef, USA
Cup follows a blue wax-paper Hinckley drinking cup in close-up as
it gets blown through the streets and parking lots of Chicago.
Program 3: “Sparkling
Diamonds” 13:11 min
The artists in this program load their work with saturated colors,
intensity, high energy and inventiveness.
“Alpinia”, 2006, 01:36,
Lee Arnold, born London - lives in USA
Alpinia mediates modernist abstraction through the lens of contemporary
technology. The camera travels through a 3D world comprised of simple
2D geometric shapes, suggesting a perfect Swiss landscape.
“Flower Immersion”, 2006, 7:35 min
Galina Schevchenko, born Russia, living
in USA
Animated and layered drawings with photographs and video footage.
The pieces are breathtaking and sumptuous.
“Pilchard.” 4 min, 2005
Patricia Shrigley, United Kingdom
Shrigley combines scratch tech and animation. In “Pilchard”,
“Laugh In” meets the East End of London. Shrigley captures
individuals of all ages dancing.
Program 4: “Brothers Grimm”
7:00 min
This selection of work evocatively appropriates and manipulates childhood
nursery rhymes and fairy tales.
“Prickle Britches”, 2006, 6:00 min
Jill Johnston-Price, USA
Prickly roses, entangling barbs, zigzagging webs, exotic spinsters,
capricious pussies, and counterfeit mothers conspire to seduce a young
girl through a deliriously surreal journey. This digitally composited
and painted animation is a loose adapted from Sleeping Beauty.
“Humpty Dumpty”, 2005,
1:00 min
Catherine Forster, USA
In “Humpty Dumpty”, children’s rhymes are coupled
with amateur home videos, creating a commentary about family, nostalgia
and memory. The video is silent.
Program 5: “Experimental
Melodies”, 17:11 min
This selection is the most experimental and includes two gorgeous
non-narrative musings.
“Chasing Pools”, 2005,
8:35
Carole Kim, USA
“Chasing the Pools” is a single-channel video based on
an immersive performance installation exploring live cameras on dancers
seamlessly integrated into the landscape of live video projection.
“A Short Song About Thread”,
2005, 4:06
Tony Gammidge, United Kingdom
A Short Song About Thread was inspired by the myths of Icarus and
Ariadne and is a response to a text written by playwright Dominic
Orlando. It was filmed in Florida where the local insects are used
to express feelings of claustrophobia and the ensuing desire to break
free.
“Lichtwelten”,
2006, 4:30
Kim Collmer, Germany
“Lichtwelten”- Light Worlds- is an abstract underwater
realm of rhythmic vibrations. Spaces fold into themselves, time becomes
submerged and our laws of gravity, visual and acoustic perception
and orientation become momentarily disentangled from "reality".
“The Pond to the Ocean”,
2006, 6:40
Scott
Wolniak, USA
The Pond to the Ocean is an animation created by 5000 drawings created
with water color, ash, melted snow and pond water.
