macro & micro

I’ve been curating an exhibition called ‘Rivesaltes: Landscape of Trauma’ which is showing locally before it tours. It is a show including the work of artists with whom I have collaborated – sound: Lois Laplace, Blaise Merino; sculpture: Deev Vanorbeek; photographs: Peter Watkins, Chris Webb. My paintings, videos and audio works are also on display. Many of the collaborations are documented in this blog.

Some texts accompany the art: an introduction by me, the interview with Norbert Herz (intern at the camp in 1942), a quote from ‘The Journal of Rivesaltes’ (1942) by Friedel Bohny Reital, time-line and statements by some of the artists – just enough to give the work a context.

The show has been received well with sympathetic reviews in the local press.

http://www.lindependant.com/articles/2010-10-29/le…

I did a Google search for it and discovered that it is advertised on a site called ‘Harkis and the Rights of Man’ – which was a nice surprise. The Harkis (Algerians who fought against their countrymen for France during the civil war and thus not able to return to Algeria) were held / housed at the camp during the 70s.

I have been invited to take the show to Toulouse to be part of the CineEspagne film festival next year.

So, it is generating some interest. The director of the Rivesaltes memorial organisation in Perpignan is planning to visit, I’m hoping she will adopt the exhibition and help me organise the tour.

I’m looking forward to reading the comments made by the visitors – there may even be locals who have particular associations with the camp.

In my introduction to the show I wrote:

‘Some people might say “Whatever happened half a century ago during the occupation is in the past.” But now I see that my work is surprisingly relevant because the French Government is repeating history, seeing that we have arrived at the point where the Roma must be rounded up in accommodation centres or sent back from France to Romania.’

I’m hoping it will touch those who visit.

http://www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTISTID=11547

Its been a busy few weeks for me: screenings, painting and making a new video.

One of the screenings is virtual and curated by Wilfried Agricola de Cologne who runs New Media Fest. I submitted a video I made a couple of years ago made up of scans of my face: http://videochannel.newmediafest.org/2010/self-fea…

I had neglected this technique due to its time-consuming nature… well, that was the case until I decided that I should start scanning outside, the minutiae of nature that surrounds me which is mostly ignored.

There is a great path just up the road from my studio, grass followed by mud, then rocks, then scree… very varied and ideal for a new video. The aim was to scan the path and then join the scans together to create an animation… a simple idea in theory. One week later: 300 scans, one aching back and one neglected family… I have at last completed the images.

The amazing thing about them is that, at first glance, they appear to be unmanipulated photos, yet something seems to be wrong with the space… for each scan I slowly moved the scanner in different directions.

The locals thought I was a little crazy and wondered what on earth I was up to with 100 or so metres of extension cable, laptop and scanner… I thought I was too. I’m sure I’m onto something exciting though.

I’ve colour-corrected them already and this weekend plan to export them to FCP… that’s when the really hard work will start. I have enough images for a one minute video which, if it works out, I plan to submit to one minute film festivals. The ‘stills’ work independently, so I may print a few off, as ends in themselves and perhaps as starting points for new paintings.

This week I’ve also been playing with caustic soda on aluminium, but that’s another story.

http://www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTISTID=11547

http://www.jonathan-moss.com

At last I’ve done it… made a video featuring my interview with Norbert Herz, the intern at the camp at Rivesaltes during 1942.

I have been debating whether or not to make my videos self-explanatory, less abstract and more descriptive. A while back I posted on the AN forum how much information should you give in a work of art… My videos are usually quite abstract, so need some sort of context, which I usually provide at the start with a few lines of text explaining where the video was made and a little history of the camp, this time I’ve built on that.

The new video is entitled simply: ‘Rivesaltes’ (rather than my normal ‘RQV’ or ‘RSA’); at the start is the usual text with the addition of a quote from the memorial stone at the camp which reads:

Delivered to the Nazis in the occupied zone by authority of the French government, deported to the extermination camp of Auschwitz, and murdered because they were Jews. We will never forget these victims of racist and xenophobic hatred.

Then dispersed throughout the video are five sentences spoken by Norbert Herz, for example:

People lost their lives, and many children, many, many children lost their mothers and fathers.

The images and sound are evocative, made at the camp, the sound is the howling wind and sometimes crunch of a footstep, the images are presented as a triptych… moving forms, occasionally a glimpse of a hut, but mostly shots of trees, bushes, grass and stones.

The images present a blurry indescriptive view of the camp… I’ve explored how we perceive the world and how we sometimes have a vague memory of something. I filmed a random walk in the camp – trying to avoid my personal reaction to it. Nothing is focused – I’ve not sought to emphasise any aspect of the filming, it’s just a walk, not necessarily mine – a walk anybody could make at the camp. The images aren’t ones I planned to make… just ‘open’ images for anyone to interpret.

This is all sounding a bit ‘Death of the Author’… and to a certain extent that is what has guided the development of the video.

Norbert Herz is talking, explaining his experience of the camp, an experience he had 70 years ago, a strong memory, but more recollections of experiences and feelings.

Is there suspense in the video? I’m not sure there has to be, but it is a film, with a beginning, middle and end… the viewer may wonder who is talking and it is only at the end that this is revealed – I’m hoping it works.

So, I’m frantically promoting ‘Rivesaltes’ now and hoping there is some interest.

I hope to create my own vimeo channel and spend some time interacting with other members – all good networking – so little time though. I’m also bogged down with framing the new series of paintings on metal that I’ve just completed. They are quite fragile so need to be protected, quite good timing though as it’s good weather now and I can work in the studio without a coat (at last).

http://www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTISTID=11547

http://www.jonathan-moss.com

I’m now recovering from four days of guests as part of a local open studio event. It’s good from time-to-time to be able to chat to people interested in what I do, openings rarely give you that opportunity. The weather was terrible, but hundreds of people came up to my little village, not only to see my work, but for concerts and performances.

A friend of mine made a sound and video performance in our 17th Century chapel – images projected on to the ceiling; there was also a string quartet and a jazz duo on at other times over the weekend. Also, a choir sang in my studio, which proved to be a good idea as I made a few sales that night.

Amongst the people who just came for the entertainment were some collectors… I also met a printmaker who has a large etching press which I may be able to use, a film-maker who knows all about Final Cut (and of particular interest for me, export settings for broadcast) and two gallery owners who have invited me to exhibit – so, all in all I can say it was a worthwhile experience.

Back to work now though – my camera has been repaired so I’m planning on making some films, this time at night and I also have a new series of paintings which needs to be completed.

http://www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTISTID=11547

http://www.jonathan-moss

It is the Athens Video Art Festival this weekend – seems like bad timing; I’ve been following the terrible events on the news and contacted them via Facebook, as have other artists, to find out if it has gone ahead, but not yet had a relpy.

I also was part of a screening in Crouch End last Thursday: One Minute Volume Four – they showed RSA4. The programme will also be shown at PRISM hosted by S1 Artspace next week. I received an email this morning saying that it will also be shown at the Big Screen in Manchester and Liverpool, organised by the BBC.

I remember now that I sent the organiser of One Minute an email on the day of the deadline asking if I could submit a link to my website – she replied immediately and accepted my work… all was decided within five minutes – the fastest response I have ever had. I was pleased to be accepted for the screening in the bar at Crouch End – and now it has evolved into greater things – isn’t it great when things work out.

http://www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTISTID=11547

http://www.jonathan-moss.com

RSA 4