BLOCKBUSTER: Cinema for Exhibitions
June 23–September 25, 2011
Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey (MARCO)
Zuazua y Jardón S/N, Centro
Monterrey, Nuevo León
México, 64000
T +52 (81) 8262.4500
F +52 (81) 8262.4509
www.marco.org.mx
WITH A SPECIAL APPEARANCE BY: Fernando Ortega
CURATED BY: Jens Hoffmann
The exhibition Blockbuster: Cinema for Exhibitions investigates how a number of significant contemporary artists working with film and video have been affected by, and redeploy in their own practices, cinematic strategies found in the work of major 20th-century filmmakers.
Many of the works in Blockbuster: Cinema for Exhibitions analyze the manner in which meaning, narrative, and convention are established by employing certain qualities of cinema—breaking it down into its constituent parts to show us its powerfully manipulative and revealing aspects. Others reference the work of directors who emphasize context and location, favoring an overall atmospheric effect. In a rather different way, some artists use a conceptual structure, drawing a comparison between the role of filmmaking and the significance of conceptual gestures. The film genre of the documentary is also referenced, whether to manipulate our belief in what is being told or to explore the history of a particular narrative. And another group of works examines the potential for an alternative form of performative work in film and video, utilizing strategies of dance, choreography, and music to explore the rich intersection between physical movement and film.
As a fundamental part of the show, each of the participating artists was invited to select an accompanying movie that they consider related to their work. These selections will be screened as part of a special program that runs parallel to the exhibition. It features films by the following directors:
Chantal Akerman, Michelangelo Antonioni, Robert Bresson, René Clair, Jean Eustache, Federico Fellini, Alfredo Gurrola, Charles Laughton, Joseph Losey, Leo McCarey, Max Ophüls, Michael Powell, Alain Resnais, Tony Richardson, Jacques Tati, Bertrand Tavernier, Dalton Trumbo, Jean Vigo, Orson Welles
Blockbuster: Cinema for Exhibitions is the first exhibition produced by CIAC that contains works that are not part of CIAC’s collection. It aims to contribute to the decentralization of culture in Mexico and will travel to some of the most significant contemporary art museums in the country before embarking on a tour of other countries in Latin America. The physical presentation involves a number of temporary structures that guarantee the best technical environment for the screenings while also being mobile enough for the extended tour. The overall program is designed with the intent to create a new kind of relationship between exhibition and viewer; the constantly changing programs and screenings of classic movies, if they are to be experienced fully, demand repeated visits and a more active dialogue between institution and audience.
Created in 1992, the Isabel and Agustín Coppel Collection is considered one of the most solid and dynamic within contemporary art in México. Each one of its projects reaffirms the commitment to stimulation and diffusion of art and culture in México and the world.
An extensive, full-color, bilingual (Spanish/English) accompanying publication will be available starting in June 2011. Its design is based on the iconography of traditional Mexican split-fountain movie posters with their bold typefaces and vivid colors. It includes essays by the curator Jens Hoffmann, the scholar José Luis Barrios, and the film critic Ernesto Diezmartínez Guzmán as well as information on all the participating artists and their works, extended notes on the classic films selected by the artists, and a special insert featuring a newly commissioned photographic project by Fernando Ortega depicting abandoned or repurposed movie theaters in Mexico City.
Blockbuster: Cinema for Exhibitions is produced by
CIAC A.C.
Temístocles 341PB
Col. Polanco
C.P. 11560
México
