Bill Viola
The Quintet of the Unseen
Blain|Southern
21 Dering Street, London W1S 1AL
9 February – 12 March 2011
Preview: Tues 6-8pm, 8 February
Blain|Southern is delighted to present The Quintet of
the Unseen, a large-scale video work by the acclaimed American artist Bill
Viola.
Imitating the composition of a Renaissance painting, five actors stand close
together against a neutral background. Initially their expressions are blank,
however as the cycle unfolds, the group, who do not move from their original
positions or interact with each other, are gradually overcome by emotion. As
this builds to a crescendo, they become overwhelmed, distressed. From such
fervour they can only come down, and by the end of the cycle each of the actors
is emotionally spent.
As with other Viola works, the 15:19-minute film runs in ultra-slow motion. This
makes visible the smallest nuances of expression, allowing viewers to discover
the layered complexity of feeling unfolding before them, creating a subjective,
psychological space where time is suspended for performer and viewer alike.
The Quintet of the Unseen is from Viola's four-part 'Quintet Series';
the other three works are quintet of the 'Astonished', 'Remembrance' and
'Silent'.
For further information and images please contact Mark
Inglefield
T: +44 758 419
9500
E: mark@blainsouthern.com
Notes to
editors:
Bill Viola
For almost forty years, Bill Viola (b.1951) has been instrumental in the
establishment of video as a vital form of contemporary art, and in so doing has
helped to greatly expand its scope in terms of technology, content, and
historical reach. Viola represented the U.S. at the 46th Venice Biennale in
1995, and his work has been the subject of several large solo survey
exhibitions: The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (travelled to 5
venues) 1997-2000; The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles (travelled to 3
venues), 2003-2005; Mori Art Museum, Tokyo (2006); and Palazzo delle
Esposizioni, Rome (2008). Among his numerous awards, he received a John D. and
Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship in 1989. He holds honorary
doctorates from Syracuse University (1995), The School of the Art Institute of
Chicago (1997), and Royal College of Art, London (2004) among others, and was
inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2000). In 2006 he was
awarded Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Government, and
received the Catalonia International Prize in
2009.
Viola lives in Long Beach, California, with his wife and long-time collaborator,
Kira
Perov.
Blain|Southern was established in September 2010 by Harry Blain
and Graham Southern. This is the gallery's second
exhibition.
|
