Zen For Film de Nam June Paik, Fluxus Film, 1964

In an endless loop, unexposed film runs through the projector. The resulting projected image shows a surface illuminated by a bright light, occasionally altered by the appearance of scratches and dust particles in the surface of the damaged film material. As an analogy to John Cage, who included silence as a non-sound in his music, Paik uses the emptiness of the image for his art. This a film which depicts only itself and its own material qualities, and which, as an «anti-film,» is meant to encourage viewers to oppose the flood of images from outside with one’s own interior images.

Après, on peut se demander l’intêret de regarder ce film sur youtube ou un médium autre que celui d’origine, à savoir de la pellicule 16mm. La pellicule offrait cette capacité à s’user peu à peu lors des projections, offrant à chaque fois un spectacle différent au spectateur mais aussi une bande son mécanique et là encore, unique.

Texte anglais d’Heike Helfert