Ils Respirent
Valérie Mréjen
Friday, January 8th - Sunday, February 28th, 2010
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
Screening is proud to present Ils Respirent (They Breathe) by French artist, writer and filmmaker Valérie Mréjen. Employing elements of autobiography and a refined cinematic aesthetic, Mréjen continues her exploration of portraiture and human relationships. Eight characters are pictured individually, almost motionless, while their thoughts play out as a voice over, relating off-screen narratives that explore emotional distress through the most quotidian affairs. The work could be considered a formal inversion of popular cinema (where viewers more typically follow action and narrative while being left to conjecture a character’s thoughts and emotions) but retains a heightened sense of drama through production devices such as lighting, scripting, editing/pacing and deadpan performance, through which the characters convey a sense of anxiety, restlessness and dark humor.
Valérie Mréjen lives and works in Paris. She is both a published writer (her books include Mon grand-père [1999] and L'agrume [2001]) and an established filmmaker, although both media often overlap and interrelate in her work. Her videos and films have been exhibited internationally at venues including the Tate Modern (London), Jeu de Paume and Centre Pompidou (Paris), and CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts (San Francisco). Mréjen is represented by Galerie Serge le Borgne (Paris).
