Colorfield Variations

Colour, DIGIBETA
USA, Germany, Austria, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Japan, 2007, 72 min
Section: 2009: A Musical Odyssey

Synopsis

This diverse collection of experimental films and musical images was originally created for a gallery event in Washington. In fact, the "Washington school” is central to the 1950s artistic movement "chromatic abstraction” (Mark Rothko, Clyfford Still...). Some of the new media artists whom curator Richard Chartier approached to appear in his Variations are also involved in abstract avant-garde film (Alan Callander). The film profiles representatives of the progressive beat scene (Frank Bretschneider) and the older generation of experimental musicians (members of the British band Throbbing Gristle). The Japanese contributions (Ryoichi Kurokawa, Sawako) are refined and emotive, tracing the organic curves of a rose. In pursuit of the poetic image, the Russian-American duo Evelina Domnitch + Dmitry Gelfand opt for the scientific approach: in a film entitled Ten Thousand Peacock Feathers in Foaming Acid they use a laser to scan the surface of soap bubbles. The collection as a whole reveals strong links between new media and established notions about the relationship between colour, sound and time.

About the director

Richard Chartier (b. 1971, Arlington, Virginia) creates sound art, installations and graphic art. In 2000 he established the prominent music label 12k / LINE in the USA, which he heads together with Taylor Dupree. As curator, he initiated and compiled the collection Colorfield Variations, presented at festivals in New York and Seattle and also at museums of modern art (Los Angeles, Brussels, Tel Aviv, Tokyo). The film profiles the work of the following artists: Steve Roden, Alan Callander, Frank Bretschneider, Stephan Mathieu, Sue Costabile + Beequeen, Tez, Tina Frank + General Magic, Bas van Koolwijk, Chris Carter + Cosey Fanni Tutti, Ryoichi Kurokawa, Sawako, Evelina Domnitch + Dmitry Gelfand, Ernest Edmonds + Mark Fell.