In addition to these shared themes, Tartaglia recognizes another common virtue: failure. And the specter of sadism in his films is on full, nauseating display in the notorious ethnography-cum-shockumentary Mondo Cane (1962). His reverence for ornamentation aspires to the visual decadence of the sumptuous period piece The Leopard (1963). His Caribbean wanderlust is evinced in romantic adventures like White Savage (1943) and the Cuban-shot Cry of the Bewitched (1957). Yet for all of Smith’s capriciousness as a filmmaker, his favorite films, though varied, are endearingly obvious. Luchino Visconti, ‘The Leopard’ (1963), film still (image courtesy 20th-Century Fox) He eschews narrative conventions in favor of pure sensory experience. Watching Smith’s films is an exercise in presence. The camera flirts with flashing daggers and other plot-thickening devices but doesn’t succumb to sequencing. ![]() Staccato cuts and blinking overlays hint at Smith’s propensity to manipulate the film itself, sometimes live in improvisation. All unfolds over a score of lackadaisical island music: the soundtrack to Smith’s obsession with exoticism. Freed from narrative, sequined-clad creatures languish in baths, frolic over ruins, and tear through the countryside. ![]() True to its title, the program is a collection of Smith’s favorite films, the realization of a letter Smith wrote to his friend Peter Gilad in 1971.īut first, we dipped into Smith’s universe, a sparkling cornucopia of Hollywood iconography distilled to its colors, textures, and intrigue. Tartaglia, a fellow filmmaker and acquaintance of Smith’s who’s spent the past 20 years painstakingly restoring the fragments of Smith’s oeuvre, presented several of Smith’s shorts to contextualize what would follow: Jack Smith Selects (From the Grave). Presenter Jerry Tartaglia carried a talisman - a stone plucked from the set of Smith’s unfinished masterpiece, Normal Love (1963–65) - in his pocket for the ominous occasion. Lamenting the state of the art market in 1974 in his characteristic falsetto, he lambasted a system in which the speculation of the wealthy serves as the arbiter of value.Īnthology is implicated in the tirade: it was founded by Smith’s sworn nemesis Jonas Mekas, and so is a perversely apt venue to house the departed filmmaker’s rage. On the recent Friday the 13th, Jack Smith’s disembodied voice rattled through Anthology Film Archives. Video by Jared Larson and photos by Lisa Janssen.Jack Smith, ‘Normal Love’ (1963–65), film still (© Jack Smith Archive, courtesy Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels) Michelle Tupko plays a supporting role and the lecture was presented as part of the Red Rover Experimental Reading Series. In 2008, and with the help of a lively cast including Millie Kapp, Annie Rudnik, AD Jameson, Julia Rich, Elliot Elliot, Omen Sade, Michelle Tupko, and Rose Hernandez, I staged Jack Smith’s play Rehearsal for the Destruction of Atlantis in my bedroom.īelow is footage from a lecture I gave at the Orientation Center in Chicago, IL inspired by Jack Smith as well as the year-long performance artist Tehching Hsieh. Occasionally I would give performative lectures during which I talked about Jack’s life and work, but really I just wondered around, added elements to my costume, and ate fruit. You can check out some of Jack’s films on UbuWeb.įrom 2008-2010 I did a series of performances inspired by Jack Smith. Jack was fascinated by penguins, merkins, vampires, glitter, and drag. Jack lived among sculptures he created and those sculptures became set pieces for performances. Sometimes people that showed up to watch would find themselves cast as characters in the show. The performances were largely unrehearsed and would go on for hours without a clear beginning and end. In addition to creating underground film classics such as Flaming Creatures and Normal Love, Jack made performances in his loft apartment that blurred the line between life and art. ![]() For many years I have been obsessed with performance artist/filmmaker Jack Smith (1932-1989).
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