For this 40th edition, FIFA is honored to welcome the Carte Blanche of Aseman Sabet co-presented with MUTEK.
Absorptions
“In an era marked by the exponential presence of new technologies, what is the impact of the fleeting consumption of images on our ability to immerse ourselves in what we are watching? Entirely composed of video works, this program is articulated around the notion of attention span. It brings together artistic propositions that invite us to drift along with the image while, at the same time, measuring our relationship to the experience of duration. Rather than an imperative, the ability to focus here becomes an object of reflection that takes shape through various themes, which echo one another through a sustained emphasis on their temporality. Each work, in its own way, thus calls to observe how we observe, and what our reflexes are in the face of the time we grant to what is given to be seen.
Engaging a gaze that is at once poised and incisive, these eight videos draw on both natural and technological, living and non-living motifs. They dialogue with the spheres of memory, of history, but also of science and documentary. At the heart of these intertwined trails, sound takes on a particular meaning that reinforces the multiple visual rhythms that are convened.“
Aseman Sabet
Guest programmer
La Traversée — François Quévillon. Canada. 2018. 3 min. No dialogue.
Alert. A letter from Rachel Carson — Frédéric Lavoie. Canada. 2020. 4 min. No dialogue.
Fragile Monument — Virginie Laganière, Jean-Maxime Dufresne. Canada. 2022. 10 min. No dialogue.
Stitching My Landscape — Maureen Gruben. Canada. 2017. 6 min. No dialogue.
Couple — Rachel Echenberg. Canada. 2022. 3 min. No dialogue.
The Reflecting Pool — Bill Viola. United States. 1977 – 1979. 7 min. No dialogue.
RETE MIRABILE (counter-current) — Monica Ursina Jäger. Switzerland. 2020. 7 min. No dialogue.
Présage — Hicham Berrada. France. 2019. 10 min. No dialogue.
Absorptions is a co-production of the International Festival of Films on Art, as part of the FIFA POP-UPS! initiative, and MUTEK, as part of the Digital Detox project. The organizations thank SODEC, the Canada Council for the Arts and Place des Arts for their support of this program.
Digital Detox is a public education and exhibition project about digital arts and their impact on our lives. The initiative launched in 2021 by MUTEK is anchored in a reflection process around the distinct fatigue linked to the consumption of screen content. This reflection was naturally extended into a questioning of the “ecological fatigue” generated by this sudden overproduction of digital nature during the pandemic, and on the notion of disconnection.
About MUTEK
Launched in the year 2000, MUTEK is dedicating itself to the presentation of live electronic music and real-time audiovisual performance, making it one of the rare outlets in North America for such innovations. After more than 20 years, the festival’s future-seeking mandate has matured — and while the promise has in many ways caught up with the present — its commitment to the ongoing mutations and variations of contemporary digital creativity remain, with its eyes and ears still fixated on what comes next. The 23rd edition will be celebrated in several venues in Montréal from August 23 to 28, 2022, as well as on a custom-made interactive online platform.
Absorptions
“In an era marked by the exponential presence of new technologies, what is the impact of the fleeting consumption of images on our ability to immerse ourselves in what we are watching? Entirely composed of video works, this program is articulated around the notion of attention span. It brings together artistic propositions that invite us to drift along with the image while, at the same time, measuring our relationship to the experience of duration. Rather than an imperative, the ability to focus here becomes an object of reflection that takes shape through various themes, which echo one another through a sustained emphasis on their temporality. Each work, in its own way, thus calls to observe how we observe, and what our reflexes are in the face of the time we grant to what is given to be seen.
Engaging a gaze that is at once poised and incisive, these eight videos draw on both natural and technological, living and non-living motifs. They dialogue with the spheres of memory, of history, but also of science and documentary. At the heart of these intertwined trails, sound takes on a particular meaning that reinforces the multiple visual rhythms that are convened.“
Aseman Sabet
Guest programmer
La Traversée — François Quévillon. Canada. 2018. 3 min. No dialogue.
Alert. A letter from Rachel Carson — Frédéric Lavoie. Canada. 2020. 4 min. No dialogue.
Fragile Monument — Virginie Laganière, Jean-Maxime Dufresne. Canada. 2022. 10 min. No dialogue.
Stitching My Landscape — Maureen Gruben. Canada. 2017. 6 min. No dialogue.
Couple — Rachel Echenberg. Canada. 2022. 3 min. No dialogue.
The Reflecting Pool — Bill Viola. United States. 1977 – 1979. 7 min. No dialogue.
RETE MIRABILE (counter-current) — Monica Ursina Jäger. Switzerland. 2020. 7 min. No dialogue.
Présage — Hicham Berrada. France. 2019. 10 min. No dialogue.
Absorptions is a co-production of the International Festival of Films on Art, as part of the FIFA POP-UPS! initiative, and MUTEK, as part of the Digital Detox project. The organizations thank SODEC, the Canada Council for the Arts and Place des Arts for their support of this program.
Digital Detox is a public education and exhibition project about digital arts and their impact on our lives. The initiative launched in 2021 by MUTEK is anchored in a reflection process around the distinct fatigue linked to the consumption of screen content. This reflection was naturally extended into a questioning of the “ecological fatigue” generated by this sudden overproduction of digital nature during the pandemic, and on the notion of disconnection.
About MUTEK
Launched in the year 2000, MUTEK is dedicating itself to the presentation of live electronic music and real-time audiovisual performance, making it one of the rare outlets in North America for such innovations. After more than 20 years, the festival’s future-seeking mandate has matured — and while the promise has in many ways caught up with the present — its commitment to the ongoing mutations and variations of contemporary digital creativity remain, with its eyes and ears still fixated on what comes next. The 23rd edition will be celebrated in several venues in Montréal from August 23 to 28, 2022, as well as on a custom-made interactive online platform.
In Partnership with
Image tirée du film Alert. A letter from Rachel Carson // Image from the film Alert. A letter from Rachel Carson
Image tirée du film Couple // Image from the film Couple
Image tirée du film La Traversée // Image from the film La Traversée
Image tirée du film Présage // Image from the film Présage
Image tirée du film RETE MIRABILE (counter-current) // Image from the film RETE MIRABILE (counter-current)
Image tirée du film Stitching My Landscape // Image from the film Stitching My Landscape
Image tirée du film The Reflecting Pool // Image from the film The Reflecting Pool
Image tirée du film Fragile Monument // Image from the film Fragile Monument
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