Artificial Eye & Un Chant d’Amour

The New York based video-artist Janene Higgins and
musician-composer Zeena Parkins (the duo travels under the resonant
name of LUXBEAT) present Artificial Eye. This multi-media performance was
inspired by the life of Hildegard von Bingen (see page 10). From a very early
age Hildegard suffered from intense headaches, which caused vivid
hallucinations. She interpreted the migraine auras as
“visions from the heavens”. At the age of 42 she had a vision that would change
the course of her life: she was summoned to “tell and write” what she saw and
heard in her visions. A substantial opus followed, including theological
studies, liturgical chants, and scientific studies on nature and medicine.
Hildegard’s writings are also unique for their generally positive view of
sexual relations and her description of pleasure from a woman’s point of view.
Luxbeat succeeds exceptionally
well in evoking Hildegard’s auras. While we hear Parkins’ mesmerising sounds
produced on her electric harp and sampler, Higgins mixes live abstract visuals,
and quotes from the visionary and real-time images of her 20th century
interpreter. The music triggers images, images trigger the music.
In other words, this will be
Kinoteka-SyHaPa’s first truly interactive Kino-Uho™. Artificial Eye is a
40-minute trance, a meditation on the life and work of an inspiring and
remarkable woman. Artificial Eye was premiered last year at Dokumenta X in
Kassel.
In the second part of the programme
Zeena Parkins will play her score for Jean Genet’s first and only movie Un
Chant d’Amour. Genet’s cult film is based upon his novel Our Lady of the
Flowers. It depicts the fantasies of a gay, male prisoner and his jailer. For
years Un Chant d’Amour was banned in many countries, and was screened only
privately or on the underground circuit.
Parkins’ score for this “great
poetic masterpiece of power, love and lust in prison” is part of a series of
scores she has written for silent films. She presented her compositions for
films by Kenneth Anger and Maya Deren at Druga godba ’97.

Artificial Eye: Zeena Parkins: electric harp,
sampler; Janene Higgins: mix.

Un Chant d’Amour: Directed by Jean Genet. 25
min., silent, BW, 35mm, France, 1950.
New score written and performed by Zeena Parkins.

Co-organised by
Slovenska kinoteka & SyHaPa