Film Screening: Simone Forti

Two film programs, presented by Film I Samtidskonsten and Index at Zita Biografen, provide a rare opportunity to see works by Simone Forti, a key figure of the New York dance community in the 1960s and 1970s, in a cinema setting. The program includes films and documentations of performances by Simone Forti and collaborators. Simone Forti’s exhibition “Here it Comes” is on view at Index until 15 November 2015.

Program 1

Mon 5 October, 19:00
Biografen Zita

“Touch” (1989, 56 min.) is based on a performance by Simone Forti and her company at Wave Hill, a beautiful 28-acre estate in New York. Developed specifically for this landscape, the performance creates magical, playful scenes in which the artists explore connections between the archaeological history of the site and present human condition. The soundtrack for the film is made by the legendary experimental composer Charlemagne Palestine. “‘Touch’ strongly evokes those
haunted summer dusks when children play wild outdoors games too late.” (New York Times)

“Touch” (1989, 56 min.), with Charlemagne Palestine (music), Wave Hill, New York, 17-18 August 1989. Performer: Simone Forti & Troupe (K.J. Holmes, David Zembrano, Lauri Nagel, Eric Schofer)

Program 2

Mon 12 October, 19:00
Biografen Zita

The second program consists of two documentations of performances from Forti’s ongoing series of “News Animations” which combine spoken text and movement, and two works made for the camera, including her most recent piece “Flag in the Water.” In her “New Animation” works, Forti starts with a pile of newspapers or a few other objects on stage that spark questions and develop into a discourse of language and body movement. Text, which is otherwise a component of preparation for performances, is spoken or read to the audience as part of the event. For her performance at The Getty Museum in Los Angeles, part of an evening of dance by her and Yvonne Rainer, Forti used a split American flag in two pieces, one with stars and one with stripes. A similar flag is used also in the video “Flag in the Water”, produced for a recent exhibition at Midway Contemporary Art in Minneapolis, in which the Mississippi River becomes a collaborator. In this new work, it is more than ever impressive to see how fearlessly Forti handles her own body as material of her work. Like this video, also “Solo No. 1” is specifically performed for the camera. The choreography of the solo has been influenced by her studies of animal movements. The video was produced as part of the legendary Castelli-Sonnabend Tapes, an early distribution model for video art supported by Leo Castelli and Ileana Sonnabend.

“Flag in the Water” (2015, 20 min.), Mississippi River, Minneapolis, 27 July 2015. Performer: Simone Forti, camera and editing: Jason Underhill
“News Animation, Bennington College” (2003, 11 min.). Performer: Simone Forti
“News Animation, Getty Museum” (2004, 10 min.), “An Evening of Dance with Yvonne Rainer and Simone Forti”, The Getty Museum, Los Angeles, 8 May 2004. Performer: Simone Forti, camera: Mark Eby, Tony Arias
“Solo No. 1” (1974, 18 min.), produced by Castelli-Sonnabend Tapes and Video Data Bank, Chicago, Sonnabend Gallery, New York, September 1974. Performer: Simone Forti

All films are courtesy the artist and The Box, Los Angeles.

Tickets can be booked directly through Zita, by calling 08 – 23 20 20 or visiting the cinema’s ticket office.
Location: Biografen Zita, Birger Jarlsgatan 37, 111 45 Stockholm
Admission: 60 SEK