YEAR 11 CASE STUDY- BILL VIOLA b. 1951
Bill Viola is a video and sound installation artist.
"His works are completely absorbing, often literally encapsulating the viewer in an experience that controls the visual and aural senses" (Hodge and Anson, 1996, p.374).
Since the 1970s, Viola's videos and installations have dealt with themes of perception, memory and self-awareness. (Taken from website).
The Crossing, 1996.
"His works are completely absorbing, often literally encapsulating the viewer in an experience that controls the visual and aural senses" (Hodge and Anson, 1996, p.374).
Since the 1970s, Viola's videos and installations have dealt with themes of perception, memory and self-awareness. (Taken from website).
The Crossing, 1996.
Nantes Triptych, 1992. Video and mixed media.
"In Nantes Triptych, three large screens almost fill the viewer's field of vision with the crucial human concerns and actual moments of birth and death. Between the two is an enigmatic, dreamlike sequence of a clothed figure plunging into watery depths. It is a moving and disturbing meditation on states of consciousness and being and illustrates Viola's contemplation on the "philosophical mind-body problem coming to a crescendo as an ecological drama..." (Hodge and Arson, 1996, p. 374).
What is meant by the term 'enigmatic'?
Explain what "philosophical mind-body problem coming to a crescendo as an ecological drama" means. How is this seen in the work Nantes Triptych?
What is meant by the term 'enigmatic'?
Explain what "philosophical mind-body problem coming to a crescendo as an ecological drama" means. How is this seen in the work Nantes Triptych?
Taken from YouTube, URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-V7in9LObI
Viola will often draw from historical religious paintings. He reinterprets them in order to focus on the complexity of human feelings and emotions. He does this by often filming his actions in extreme slow motion, favouring long passages of silence and close-ups of bodies and faces in various positions to achieve different emotional expressions. The audience plays a crucial role in his artworks. Depending on the atmosphere and impact he is attempting to achieve, he uses a variety of media. These can range from videos rear-projected on to a wall, large plasma screens to total room installations (Williams and Vance Wilson, 2008). How important is the exhibition space to Viola's work? |
Emergence, 2002. Colour high-definition video rear-projected on screen mounted on wall in dark room. Projected image size: 214.2 x 214.2 x 9.8cm. 11:49 minutes duration.
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The Crossing, 1996. Video/ sound installation.
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Ascending Angel from Five Angels for the Millennium, 2001. Five channel, video projection with stereo sound. Projected image: 216.0 x 306.3 cm.
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"He is interested in reaching our elusive emotional depths" (Williams and Vance Wilson, 2008, p. 396). |
ACTIVITY:
PRACTICE:
1. How has Viola re-defined the boundaries of artmaking practice?
Refer to at least one artwork in your response.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK:
2. How has Viola explored the relationship between the artwork and audience.
Refer to at least one artwork in your response.
FRAMES:
3. How is emotion used in Viola's artworks to provoke and generate discussion about ideas and concepts?
Refer to at least two artworks in your response.
4. Explain how Viola communicates his concepts using a visual language (signs and symbols).
1. How has Viola re-defined the boundaries of artmaking practice?
Refer to at least one artwork in your response.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK:
2. How has Viola explored the relationship between the artwork and audience.
Refer to at least one artwork in your response.
FRAMES:
3. How is emotion used in Viola's artworks to provoke and generate discussion about ideas and concepts?
Refer to at least two artworks in your response.
4. Explain how Viola communicates his concepts using a visual language (signs and symbols).
Created by N. Usher for Gilroy Catholic College, 2014.