ESSEX ROAD II, features eight specially commissioned short films by critically acclaimed artist-filmmakers.

The films will be shown from the large window of Tintype gallery next month and all have been inspired by the north London street from which the project takes its name, and where the gallery is also located.
This year builds on the hugely popular inaugural event last year, with an array of leading artists providing compelling films with subjects ranging from Helen Benigson’s visceral celebration of the female ritual of the hen night, to Uriel Orlow’s film based around playwright and author Joe Orton’s fictional alter ego Edna Walthorpe, filmed on his doorstep.

The eight artists have each responded to the theme of this mile-long street in the borough of Islington, North London, in diverse ways to produce mesmerising films of great poetry, beauty and visual power, and further highlights include; New York-based pioneer of independent cinema Jem Cohen’s film built from street footage, portraits and sound recordings; Sebastian Buerkner’s film using innovative technology to capture the journey of a night bus; Jordan Baseman’s overlayed 16mm long exposure shots from walking up and down Essex road creating a psychedelic portrait of the street at night and Melanie Manchot’s group portrait of residents and shopkeepers captured in a continuous tracking shot.

Five minutes or less in length, the films are back-projected onto the gallery’s large window, and can be viewed from the street seven days a week between 4pm and 11pm.

Says Tintype director, Teresa Grimes:

‘The pleasure of this project is knowing that what started as an idle thought – me staring out of our large window – has become this event that people remember and look forward to. And it has been an equal pleasure to work with eight exceptional artists, all of whom have produced films that are thought-provoking, beautiful, poetic and mesmerizing in equal measure.’

Essex Road II Artists: Jordan Baseman, Helen Benigson, Sebastian Buerkner, Jem Cohen Ruth Maclennan, Melanie Manchot, Uriel Orlow, John Smith. 10th December, 2015 – 16th January, 2016 Private view: Wednesday 9th December, 6 – 8.30pm TINTYPE 107 Essex Road, London N1 2SL, www.tintypegallery.com