Monday, April 06, 2009

IN THE POOL OF STILL WATER, THERE IS A YEARNING FOR THE TORRENTIAL FLOW OF THE BIG RIVER (A+++++)

I just went to see the exhibition IN THIS CIRCUMSTANCE, THE SOLE OBJECT OF ATTENTION SHOULD BE THE TREACHERY OF THE MOON (2009, Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook, A+)
http://www.ardelgallery.com/html/detail_exhibition.php?id=35

Eight videos are shown in this exhibition. My most favorite video is IN THE POOL OF STILL WATER, THERE IS A YEARNING FOR THE TORRENTIAL FLOW OF THE BIG RIVER. There are many things I love in this video, including the fact that the position of the viewer will affect the visibility of the image in this video.

I’m not sure if Araya intended to make this kind of effect or not, but I like this thing very much, because it’s the first time I have experienced this kind of thing.

I think this video is about seven-minute long. At first you see a human body wrapped under a white cloth sleeping on a bed near a pool of still water. Then the body starts moving around under the cloth, and we also hear many voices talking at the same time.

The screen goes darker and darker, and after 4 minutes, we can see nothing at all except the black screen.

But actually it isn’t. If you stand far from the TV screen, you will see only the black screen for the last three minutes of this video. But if you stand very close to the TV screen and let your shadow fall right on the middle of the TV screen, you will be able to continue seeing the body moving and moving on the bed until the video ends. But if you move away from that spot, you will not be able to see it. You must cast your own shadow at the middle of the TV screen in order to view it.

This video gives me a really unique experience.

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