FLESH TO SPIRIT: MATERIALITY AND ABSTRACTION IN BLACK EXPERIMENTAL FILM

40 Arts Circle Drive,Evanston IL 60208

04 March, 2022

Description

A program that explores abstraction and the materiality of film and video to represent Black experience, from the 1960s to the present FLESH TO SPIRIT: MATERIALITY AND ABSTRACTION IN BLACK EXPERIMENTAL FILM "Flesh to Spirit" explores the manifold ways that film artists have embraced abstract techniques and explored the materiality of film and video to represent Black experience, from the 1960s to the present. Charting connections between several generations of moving-image makers, "Flesh to Spirit" will showcase brilliant works in 16mm and 35mm film, analog and digital video. From Paige Taul’s After DeCarava, which treats photographic abstraction as a form of care, to Ayanna Dozier’s Maman Brigitte, which connects Black women’s bodily autonomy to the contingency and texture of analog film, the films in "Flesh to Spirit" propose alternative potentialities in film and life alike. Following the screening, filmmakers Paige Taul and Christopher Harris will appear for a discussion and Q&A. Free and open to all Image credit (banner above): Bedouin Spark (2009) Christopher Harris Image credit: Maman Brigitte (2021) Ayanna Dozier The Block Museum is Northwestern University’s art museum. The Block is a dynamic, imaginative, and innovative teaching and learning resource for Northwestern and its surrounding communities, featuring a global exhibition program that crosses time periods and cultures and serves as a springboard for thought-provoking discussions relevant to our lives today. The museum also commissions new work by artists to foster connections between artists and the public through the creative process. Each year, the Block mounts exhibitions; organizes and hosts lectures, symposia, and workshops involving artists, scholars, curators, and critics; and screens classic and contemporary films at its in-house cinema. The museum also reaches national and international audiences through its traveling exhibitions, publications and website. Its growing permanent collection of approximately 5,000 works focuses primarily on prints, photography, and drawings. The Museum is located on the southeastern portion of Northwestern's Evanston campus, near the lake and Sheridan Road. Parking is FREE after 4PM on weekdays and all day on weekends. The nearest parking garage is located at the Segal Visitor's Center on Campus Drive.  The Block is free and open to all.