Chapter, Cardiff
Sat 14 Oct – Sun 14 Jan
Larissa Sansour’s film, a combination of live motion and CGI, follows a narrative group who make elaborate porcelain deposits underground belonging to a fictional civilisation in an attempt to influence history.
The video takes the form of a fictional video essay; a voiceover between a psychiatrist and the female leader of the resistance group, where the philosophies and ideals of the group become apparent. The film delves into the leader’s sub-consciousness, where her beliefs on myths and mythmaking in the context of nationhood are explored, and how their work becomes a historical intervention – de facto creating a fictional nation. Her ‘narrative terrorism’ attempts to counter the existing narrative advantage of the rulers of her unnamed home, on behalf of her people. This award winning film project is presented along with a photo series and a porcelain instillation that has been supported by the Danish Arts Council.
Sansour was born in Jerusalem to a Palestinian father and Russian mother. She went on to study fine art at Copenhagen, New York and London. She uses her references from sci-fi, horrors and westerns to converge with the current Middle East politics and social issues in order to create an intricate parallel universe with a new value system to decode.
Admission: free. Info: www.chapter.org (CD)