As part of the art festival chaos witnessed throughout London during the glorious month of October, The Contemporary Video Art Fair, Moving Image opened Thursday in the heart of Southbank. Located on the opposite side of the Tate Modern, The Bargehouse is a 4-story warehouse within Oxo Tower Wharf. The building, which is evocative as it is charming and raw as it inviting, is now on until 7pm this Sunday. Showcasing a compilation of unique videos and international talent, this seemingly impenetrable authentic brick structure is the ideal canopy to house gripping cinematic videos and moving images which capture the senses and entice the mind to channel some unchartered thoughts and invaluable impressions.
As always, video art functions as a cool breath of refreshing air- especially from other visual art that can tend to be incredibly daunting, overwhelming and pretentious. What is the most relieving and stress free about a video art fair such as Moving Image is the fact that viewers have THE CHOICE to listen and observe videos under their own discretion. There is no gallery representative present to potentially get in the way of attemtping to tell you how to interpret the piece. Instead, the observer is free to select which red chair to sit in and which video to zoom into.
You can wander up and down stone staircases, or zig zag through corridors of brightly lit rooms and dimmed corners where videos of all shapes and sizes are on loop, patiently waiting for the next guest to participate in any perceived observation process. AMAZING.
For example, one could Allow Miia Rinne’s insanely meditative sea portrayals to lead the mind towards crisp conversations with the depths of the lagoon.
Or, why not embark on conversations with Animals through the motions of none other than, Annika Larsson’s ‘ANIMAL‘?
Just as equally, one could choose to engage in a nostalgic journey through Josh Azzarella’s newest project, which is based on the F.W. Murnau’s 1922 German Expressionist classic “Nosferatu” . With a composition which inherently undergoes a comprehensive transformation, the film itself is adapted from Bram Stoker’s Gothic novel “Dracula” (1897). The spirit of Dracula seen and felt through the aura of a misplaced ex-pirate or boatman- yes, please!
And not to mention, Leslie Thornton’s ‘SNAP oil/air/water’. A riveting and pertinent piece which may assist one in feeling as though they have entered into a monstrous cloak, masqued in glistening, monochromatic convexes of truth telling orbs.
Too dark? Take an alternate course and experience the well researched and politically enticing work, ‘Framed’, made by Shen ChaoFang. As her work refers to a new technical aesthetic and personal drama, relating to the appearance of iPhones and smartphones which has changed values and daily experience totally, any person living and breathing in the 21st century could relate.
While rustic stone floors and corresponding staircases captivate the senses to get lost through a torrential month of art fairs- allow yourself to become selfishly lost into the mindful works of some enigmatic creators and forward thinkers in this year’s Moving Image London. Do it.
For more info or to watch some sample videos go: HERE
