A major survey of work by Melanie Manchot presents ten video installations (including two new works) and several photographic series.
The show focuses on artworks that address the dynamic between individual and collective identities as well changing notions of public space. Included is her FVU film Celebration (Cyprus Street), which mobilises both cinema and photographic conventions to create a portrait of an East London street. With a street party in full swing, a long 35mm tracking shot weaves its way past tables and through mingling crowds until it stops, mid-street, as people assemble for a group portrait. Holding still, and in relative silence, for almost two minutes, the crowd slowly disperses before the camera wends its way further down the street. A celebration on the street, Manchot’s film is also a celebration of the street, in its contemporary complexity, vivacity and diversity.
During the exhibition, the museum itself will become a site of production for a live performance and film which will be made over the duration of the show.
Read more about Celebration (Cyprus Street).
Visit the MAC VAL website.