The Backroom Talks

The backroom Talks

by Walead Beshty, John Menick and Aurélien Froment

- June 1st-2nd: Walead Beshty "After the ends : Another COLD WAR SLUMBER PARTY"
A twenty-four hours screening of films addressing the Armageddon including Omega Man (1971), The Day After (1983), and The Day of the Triffids (1962). In this series of films selected and presented by artist Walead Beshty, the disaster scenarios depicting the apocalyptic imaginary of the Cold War and the fear of a nuclear holocaust frequently stand as a metaphor of social change and, particularly, of the alienation of American urban and suburban condition of the 1960's and 70's.
- June 19: John Menick: Artist, filmmaker, and writer John Menick will screen his short video "The Secret Life of Things" (2006), a work in which an unidentified man describes his fixation with "last person on earth" films -- films in which a single person awakens to find that he or she is the sole living inhabitant of a city.

After the short screening Menick will discuss his research into 'last man on earth' and apocalyptic films, showing clips from source material and talking about the work's relation to his previous video projects and writings.


- June 23rd: Aurélien Froment
"The man who saw the man who saw the man who saw the bear" (Chinese whispers, broken lines and second-hand stories)

Aurélien Froment (Angers, 1976) is attempting to arrange his archives

Summer 1999:
Summer job at the cinema L'Épée de bois, Paris Documents relating to Werner Herzog — including plans for Molly Aida (Fitzcarraldo's boat) — are found in the basement of the cinema

2000?
Photos of the foundations of the tramway in Nantes

Jan. 31st, 2002
On the way to Mulhouse, begin to think about remaking Fitzcarraldo in the Vosges
Recall the plan of the boat in the basement of the cinema
Finally, decide to remake the film as a model

June 2002
Werner Herzog at the Musée des Beaux-arts, Mulhouse

October 2002
Olivier and Monique at the opening of François Piron, Promotion, Espace Paul Ricard

Christmas 2002
Viewing of the video made by Olivier and Monique on holiday in Peru

Arcosanti break

January 2006
Raphael Zarka, 'Récurrences dérobées', Bétonsalon, Paris
Re-viewing of the video made by Olivier and Monique on holiday in Peru

May 2007
Anna Johansson, 'Une histoire à soi', La Galerie, Noisy-le-Sec

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