Work from the Collection

Moment 2

Artist: Deborah-Joyce Holman
Date: 2022
Medium: 4K digital video, stereo sound
Dimensions: 540 minutes
Collection: Lafayette anticipations - Fonds de dotation Famille Moulin
Domain: Video
Moment 2 was conceived in response to Shirley Clarke’s documentary Portrait of Jason (1967), a seminal work of cinéma verité that has also been criticised for the power dynamic between the white director and her subject, Jason Holliday, a gay Black man. In response to the over-representation of images of Black people—which fuels the consumption of their trauma at the expense of the complexity of their experiences—Deborah-Joyce Holman explores ways of acting in solidarity with Jason and breaking this cycle of oppression. With a runtime of nine hours, the work is difficult to grasp in its entirety. On screen, Rebecca Bellantoni repeats fragments of Jason’s words, selected for their self-affirming power, which seem to remind the viewer of her presence and her retention of control. While Bellantoni appears to be the protagonist of the video, she also rejects this role: her presence in front of a stationary camera, which she can avoid, becomes an exercise in non-performance.

Text written by Alessia Damioli as part of the partnership between the École du Louvre and Lafayette Anticipations – Fonds de dotation Famille Moulin.

Exhibitions

CFGNY in Residence, #3
SculptureCenter, New York (États-Unis)
from 03 Jun to 10 Jul 2023
Deborah-Joyce Holman, Moment 2
Cordova, Barcelone (Espagne)
from 12 Nov 2022 to 28 Jan 2023
Deborah-Joyce Holman, Moment 2
Schwarzescafé, Luma Westbau, Zurich (Suisse)
from 04 May to 21 Aug 2022
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