A program of moving image work by Steve Cossman
Running time : 47 minutes
"
The world, on both the micro and macro level, is constantly moving
within a framework of units this irrepressible flux of time is the nexus
of human experience and perception. Investigating the quantification of
this motion through a reordering of various elements, I employ
universally recognizable imagery within a patterned visual language.
Often using time as a structure, the ‘natural’ rhythm of life is altered
to create a resonating interval. This visual discord allows the viewer
to reconsider established perceptual relationships. Materials for these
works have been sourced from refuse and re-organized to speak to their
own degradation. " - SVC
TUSSLEMUSCLE
5 min / 16mm color / optical sound / 2007-2009
Sound element by Earthen Sea (Jacob Long, Imminent Frequencies/Lover’s Rock)
The
work presented is a reflection on humanity’s ecological relationship.
The violent pulse speaks with a sense of urgency and chaotic struggle
while the hypnotic arrangement keeps us in blinding awe us to its
condition. The collage films are composed of 7,000+ single frames, which
were appropriated from view-master reel cells. Each frame was
hand-spliced to create a linear film-strip using musical and numerical
patterns to compose visual rhythms. WHITE ROUGHAGE (below) is the raw
optically printed footage used to create the companion piece to
TUSSLEMUSCLE, entitled W H I T E C A B B A G E .
CRUSHER
12 min / 16mm color / optical sound / 2010
Sound element by Daniel Caldas (ex. Black Eyes, Dischord Records)
To
expedite the transfer/loading speed of representational images online
they are assigned a low resolution of 72 dpi. In the “de-res” process, a
considerable amount of visual information is labeled unimportant and
discarded by software. I worked with a programmer to create PHP code in
order to read a thumbnail image from left to right, top to bottom,
placing each pixel’s color as a full frame of the same color along the
timeline. The sequence of frames plays out at 24 frames per second. In
the same way that the persistence of vision creates the illusion of
smooth linear movement in frame-by-frame animation, the mind is able to
re-instate some of the lost visual/color information. Concurrently, the
static composition of the photographic image dictates a pattern in time.
A vertical line will appear at the same place in time repeatedly
creating a “beat” while horizontal lines and forms become an undulation.
Composition of form creates visual rhythm.
RELAY
12 min / Super 8mm color negative to DV / digital field recording sound / 2014
Sound performance element by Ei Wada, (Sony Music, Japan)
A
document of the environment created by artist Ei Wada. Wadasan
re-wires obsolete Braun-tubed TVs to function like a theremin.
Performing in the dark, he creates a unique audio/visual experience
using VHS cassette tapes with distorted image output to control
frequency and uses his own hands to control amplitude. I conducted an
interview with Wadasan and filmed two performances; one in Germany, the
other in Japan. Based on our conversations, I created this short piece
that emphasized his grassroots approach to instrument making and
reflected his own concepts about performance as art. The footage shot
in Japan was captured during the last hour of signal broadcasting in
Tokyo.
CLIMBER
5 min / 16mm color / digital sound / 2013
Sound element by Ryan Marino (Remnants, Imminent Frequencies)
RED CABBAGES
3 min / 16mm color / silent / 2013
Silent motion studies.
WHITE ROUGHAGE
10 min / 16mm color / digital sound / 2013
Sound element by Jahiliyya fields (Matthew Morandi, L.I.E.S.)
BIO:
Steve Cossman is founder and director of Mono No Aware (est. 2007); a non-profit cinema-arts organization whose annual event exhibits
the work of contemporary artists that incorporate live film projections
and altered light as part of a performance, sculpture or installation.
In 2010 he helped the organization establish a series of analog filmmaking workshops that
has grown to include an equipment rentals program, a film stock
distribution service, an in-person screening series entitled Connectivity Through Cinema and
the New York Library of Cinema (NYLoC). Steve’s first major work on
film, TUSSLEMUSCLE, earned him Kodak’s Continued Excellence in
Filmmaking award at F.L.E.X. and has screened at many festivals and
institutions internationally. In 2013, he completed residencies at MoMA
PS1’s Expo 1 and the Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto. In
2014, Brooklyn Magazine named Steve Cossman one of the ‘Top 100 most
Influential persons of Brooklyn Culture.’ He has been a visiting artist
at Brown University, Dartmouth, the New York Academy of Art, Yale, SAIC,
and UPenn. Steve’s recent work on film, W H I T E C A B B A G E
(2011-2014), a collaboration with Jahiliyya Fields of L.I.E.S., had its
U.S. premiere at Anthology Film Archives. He currently lives and works
in Brooklyn as a director, curator, visual artist, educator and
activist. www.mononoawarefilm.com
