Caroline Martel
dal 16/5/2012 al 11/8/2012
Segnalato da
16/5/2012
Caroline Martel
Museum of the Moving Image, Astoria
The installation 'Industry/Cinema' is a split-screen work that juxtaposes images from industrial films and popular films made between 1896 and 1991: "an engaging and original installation that will teach Museum visitors about the fascinating history of industrial films, a branch of cinema that runs parallel to the commercial cinema that everyone is familiar with" (David Schwartz).
Museum of the Moving Image will present a unique interactive installation by acclaimed Montréal filmmaker Caroline Martel. On view from May 17 through August 12, 2012, the installation Industry/Cinema is a split-screen work that juxtaposes images from industrial films and popular films made between 1896 and 1991. With specialized dual-channel headphones, visitors are able to toggle between the soundtracks, creating an ever-changing interplay between sound and image as they take an illuminating journey through film history.
On Thursday, May 17, the opening day of the exhibition, there will be a reception at 6:00 p.m., followed by a 7:30 p.m. screening of The Phantom of the Operator (http://artifactproductions.ca/index_f.htm), Martel’s imaginative archival documentary about the invisible history of female telephone operators, and a conversation with Martel moderated by Chief Curator David Schwartz. (See details below.)
“Caroline Martel’s Industry/Cinema is an engaging and original installation that will teach Museum visitors about the fascinating history of industrial films, a branch of cinema that runs parallel to the commercial cinema that everyone is familiar with,” said Schwartz. “It also will encourage visitors to play with and rethink the relationship between sound and image.”
Apart from the familiar world of feature films, there exists a lesser-known world of many thousands of industrial films, instructional and informational sponsored short films that were shown in schools, at corporate events, in the workplace, and at commercial theaters before features. Industry/Cinema (2009. 22 mins.) places side by side a selection of industrial images and those from popular or canonical films made between 1903 and 1991. Images and sounds comment on each other, often in surprising ways, allowing for a singular interactive experience. Scenes from 20 films by Thomas Edison, Charles Chaplin, François Truffaut, and Stanley Kubrick are shown alongside such archival gems as How Business Girls Keep Well, Along These Lines, and The Speech Chain, an AT&T film with a computer singing “Daisy Bell,” which was sung by the computer HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The exhibition and opening reception are made possible with support from the Quebec Government Office in New York.
Museum of the Moving Image (movingimage.us) advances the understanding, enjoyment, and appreciation of the art, history, technique, and technology of film, television, and digital media. In January 2011, the Museum reopened after a major expansion and renovation that nearly doubled its size. Accessible, innovative, and forward-looking, the Museum presents exhibitions, education programs, significant moving-image works, and interpretive programs, and maintains a collection of moving-image related artifacts.
Image: Still from Modern Dances
Press contact: Tomoko Kawamoto, tkawamoto@movingimage.is / 718 777 6830
Opening Event for Caroline Martel’s Industry/Cinema
The Phantom of the Operator with Caroline Martel in person
THURSDAY, MAY 17
6:00 p.m. reception
7:30 p.m. screening and discussion
Dir. Caroline Martel. 2004, 66 mins. This wry and delightful found-footage film reveals a little-known chapter in labor history: the story of female telephone operators’ central place in the development of global communications. With an eye for the quirky and humorous, Martel assembles a dazzling array of clips—more than one hundred remarkable, rarely seen industrial, advertising, and scientific management films produced in North America between 1903 and 1989 by Bell and Western Electric—and transforms them into a dreamlike montage documentary.
Admission is free. RSVP to rsvp@movingimage.us or by calling 718 777 6800
Museum of the Moving Image
36-01 35 Avenue (at 37 Street) - Astoria
Hours: Tuesday-Thursday, 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Friday, 10:30 to 8:00 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, 10:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Closed Monday except for certain holiday openings.
Film Screenings: Friday evenings, Saturdays and Sundays, and as scheduled. Unless otherwise noted, screenings are included with Museum admission.
Museum Admission: $12.00 for adults; $9.00 for persons over 65 and for students with ID; $6.00 for children ages 3-18. Children under 3 and Museum members are admitted free. Admission to the galleries is free on Fridays, 4:00 to 8:00 p.m.