Isaac julien is a film director and theorist who is a visiting professor of history of consciences at santa cruz university, as well as a rockefeller humanities scholar at the nyu center for media culture and history. Isaac julien, cbe born 21 february 1960 is a british installation artist and filmmaker. Playtime is presented in partnership with san francisco art institute sfai and the kramlich collection. On thursday 5 october at 12 midday, isaac julien artist will be in conversation with nicholas cullinan national portrait gallery, london. Isaac julien news newspapers books scholar jstor november 20 learn how and when to remove this template message. Isaac juliens the attendant and the sadomasochism of. Isaac julien is as acclaimed for his fluent, arresting films as for his vibrant and inventive gallery installations. One of the objectives of his work is to break down the barriers that exist between different artistic disciplines, drawing from and commenting on film. Time binds is a powerful argument that temporal and sexual dissonance are intertwined, and that the writing of history can be both embodied and erotic. Isaac julien celebrity profile check out the latest isaac julien photo gallery, biography, pics, pictures, interviews, news, forums and blogs at rotten tomatoes.
Internationally recognized, julien combines mesmerizing images with compelling audio tracks to create engaging and conceptually layered works. Filmmaker and installation artist, isaac julien cbe, was born in 1960 in london, where he currently lives and works. As with much of juliens work, the attendant positions racially motivated queer desire within a highart context, as he follows a closeted black gallery employee who confronts his repressed homosexual desires. Archive material in looking for langston 1989 and the attendant 1993 is discussed in its dialogic relation to ethnographic photographs, abolitionist iconography, and negrophilia in twentiethcentury modernism, with attention to the subtle ways juliens signature stylistic choices enact a queering of the tropes boundarycrossing. His 1989 documentarydrama exploring author langston hughes and the harlem renaissance titled looking. Territories, the attendant, and looking for langston with rinaldo walcott duration. His multiscreen installations and accompanying photographic works for museums and. Julien s 1993 film is screened twice during the berlinale 717 february 2019. Accomplished filmmaker and video installation artist isaac julien is wellknown for films like looking for langston 1989, a poetic treatment of gay black poet langston hughes and the harlem renaissance, and other groundbreaking studies of racial and sexual identity, voyages, and cultural displacement. The literature on juliens work in film and installation is extensive. Isaac juliens the attendant and the sadomasochism of everyday. Challenging queer theorys recent emphasis on loss and trauma, elizabeth freeman foregrounds bodily pleasure in the experience and representation of time as she interprets an eclectic archive of queer literature, film, video, and art. Its another watershed moment for history of queer rights in sydney for the 40th mardi gras, the pioneering proponent of new queer cinema reflects on once radical ideas that have. Isaac julien, a central figure in british visual culture and queer independent cinema, presents his.
Isaac julien is one of britains most influential, and critically acclaimed artists working today, who pioneered multiscreen installations. The fantasy life of a black male attendant in a british museum. Her powerful meditation on intimacy, subjection, and subjectivity culminates in an analysis of kara walkers black silhouettes, and the critiques leveled against both the silhouettes and the artist. Derek is a glorious, yet fitting, remembrance of one of independent films most important artist, derek jarman. Julien received his ba in fineart film from the central saint martins school of art, london 1984 and completed his postdoctoral studies at les. The attendant explores spatial temporalities in a museum context, commenting on queer history and racial boundaries. Julien makes complex threescreen video installations that are the products of months of work by teams of people. A key figure in the film and video workshop movement of the early 1980s, isaac julien is now a leading international film and video artist, producing work for cinema, television and art galleries. Isaac julienlloyd reckord black and white in colour rushes reel 46. A meditation on langston hughes and the harlem renaissance 1989 and baadasssss cinema. Still, concern with the transgressive and transformative nature of interracial desire remains a prominent theme in the film art of isaac julien, an exhibition of four short films, video. Charlie hansonisaac julien black and white in colour rushe s reel 47. Londonbased artist isaac julien is a pioneering film and video artist whose multiscreen installations display rich narrative imagery that address issues of migration, race, and global politics.
He was born in londons east end on 21 february 1960, one of five children of parents who migrated to britain from st lucia. Juliet jacques is a writer and filmmaker based in london. Abelelizabeth, christianbarbara, and moglenhelene, eds. It was lovingly crafted by artist filmmaker isaac julien, who assembled a moving collage of rare home movies, film clips and interviews, as well as a cinematic love letter from actor tilda swinton written a decade after jarmans death. Isaac julien uk, 1988 isaac julien in conversation with stephen best juliens lyrical reimagining of the cultural legacy of revered african american poet langston hughes forms a study of artistic expression and the nature of black gay desire. Reading isaac juliens film the attendant, sharpe takes up issues of representation, slavery, and the sadomasochism of everyday black life. My toolbox is my computer, smiles the genial artist, a turnerprize nominee in 2001. Isaac julien was born in february 1960 in london, england. Isaac julien im very interested in the idea of working with characters as models, characters taken from life. This essay addresses the role of african american culture in the work of filmmaker and installation artist isaac julien. The plot revolves around sexual fantasies aroused in a middleaged black male museum guard or attendant by a young white male visitor.
Isaac julien looking for langston 1989 available for. This year, the berlinale film festival presents a special panorama programme from its 40year history, including two screenings of isaac julien s 1993 work, the attendant. The eponymous attendant of juliens short film is a middleaged black man who finds his homoerotic fantasies taking over the museum he supervises when a painting depicting scenes of slavery becomes a tableau vivant of. A bold look at 70s blaxploitation films 2002 and the installation baltimore 2003, i look at the ways that juliens excavation of african. Isaac julien, expeditions, milwaukee art museum, milwaukee, wi. Riot is an intellectual biography of artist and filmmaker isaac julien born 1960, looking at key moments in his career and discussing the influences that shaped them. Small boats, cca warsaw, koenig books and isaac julien studio, 2009 isaac julien, ed. With shorts the attendant and the long road to mazatlan. His films include looking for langston 1989, young soul rebels 1991, the attendant 1993 and finding fanon 1995.
A critical study dalkey archive press, 2007 and trans. A program of films covering great part of juliens works from the 80s to 2008 will be shown on sesctv as a complement to the show. Courtesy of the artist he was very charming, a slave philosopher, or an exslave philosopher. Robert bresson, the french filmmaker and writer, spoke about the idea of using nonactors, and ive been utilizing vanessa as a character who builds over the series of films. The recurrence of the landscape as a protagonist in the narrativesand the deep implications of the way in which the artist has his images moving through the worldjustifies the choice of the shows title. His multiscreen film installations and photographs incorporate different artistic disciplines to create a poetic and unique visual language. Julien was born in the east end of london, one of the five children of his parents, who had. Curated by tim marlow artistic director, royal academy of arts, london, frieze masters talks provides a platform for leading artists, museum curators, writers and critics to discuss the history of art and its continuing significance in contemporary. Looking for langston, made collaboratively with the.
Isaac juliens the attendant at the berlinale film festival. Isaac julien was born in london, the uk where he is currently based and is an installation artist and filmmaker. For overviews, see the film art of isaac julien, introduction by amada cruz, with essays by david deitcher and david frankel, exh. One of the most innovative artists of his generation, isaac julien rose to prominence in the late 1980s with the debut of his film looking for langston 1989, a lyrical meditation on the poet langston hughes. With this work, julien inaugurates what has since become a recurring. Isaac juliens the attendant at the berlinale film festival victoria. Julien, isaac, walcott, derek, laforest, mariehelene, bruno, giuliana, munoz, jose esteban. In addition, the artist takes part in the queer academy summit 2019 on february.
With this work, julien explores spatial temporalities in a museum context, commenting on queer history and racial boundaries. While studying painting and fine art film at st martins school of art from which he graduated in 1984, isaac julien cofounded sankofa film and video collective in which he was active from 19831992. Having tried his hand at feature length narrative with young soul rebels 1991, with the attendant isaac julien returned to more experimental, avantgarde filmmaking. Remembering history in isaac juliens the attendant film. The eponymous attendant of julien s short film is a middleaged black man who finds his homoerotic fantasies taking over the museum he supervises when a painting depicting scenes of slavery becomes a tableau vivant of sadomasochistic desire.
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