My sister Mary Elizabeth suggested I should check out the Hirshhorn Museum on the National Mall. I finally made it out there today, and what I found is one of the most fantastic exhibits I have ever witnessed.
Part I, currently on display, explores the ability of film and animation to evoke dreamlike experiences. One film I found noteworthy is Christoph Girardet’s 01996 “Release”, because it demonstrates how the most elementary editing techniques — speeding, slowing, repeating — can turn a scene of terror, a screaming woman hanging from her arms, into a scene of absurd humor. If you’re in Washington, I recommend the whole exhibit. (And if you want to be especially scholastic about it, be sure to read why dreams are so delightful and why films are so troublesome, from 01920s and 01930s Continental perspectives, before you go. Hat tip to Dr. Brint for those.) Sara Carothers wrote a more complete description of the exhibit. Part II, opening in June, will shift the emphasis from dreams to “realisms”.
Photo by Jasper