Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Video Line _ Snow II

Snow II is a video performance by Richard Jochum, Austria/New York 2008 and shows how the artist rolling a ball of snow until he gets exhausted. The ball is growing and continues to grow after help arrives. But there is a limit to it; soon the group of helper is bigger than the ball thus making progress impossible. Most of the video has no sound; as if snow pacified the noise; only at the end and when a tractor arrives to assist the human crowd can we hear the humming of a machine.

The short video (TRT 00:02:41) deals with the relationship between human labor and natur, complexity, ritualized trying, and Sisyphus. "One must imagine Sisyphus happy" (A. Camus); even more so in winter wonderland where the stones to be rolled consist of snow and the laboring effort is shared by a group.

With many thanks to: Robert Jochum, Irmgard Wehinger, Magdalena Wehinger, Mathias Wehinger, Fidel Jochum, Irma Jochum, Aphrodite Desiree Navab, Werner Walser, Evi Walser.

Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

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