BILL VIOLA – MOVING STILLNESS (MT. RAINIER)
2015-10-12The exhibition focusses on one monumental installation Moving Stillness (Mt. Rainier), 1979, shown for the first time since its inauguration at Media Study/Buffalo, New York. With a large body of water, environmental sound recordings and projections, Viola’s multi-faceted yet serene creation was pioneering in its mixed use of media.
Moving Stillness (Mt. Rainier) is a landmark in Viola’s meditations on the fragility of nature and our perception of its changes over time. A screen is suspended from the ceiling above a large shallow pool of water. A projector with three separate beams (one each for red, green and blue light) sends an edit of real-time footage of Mount Rainier to the surface of the water, which then bounces up to reach the rear projection screen. At periodic intervals, the water’s surface is disturbed causing the three beams of colour to separate, until finally becoming an unrecognisable pattern of form and colour. Slowly the water settles, to once more form a coherent image after the surface vibrations subside.
The solid, unmoving, reflected image of a mountain proves to be delicate and impermanent as it disintegrates at slight disturbances on the surface of the water. Presented in the gallery as a stand-alone work, this meditative installation offers a rare moment for mindful focus.
Exhibition runs through to November 21st, 2016
Blain|Southern
4 Hanover Square
London
W1S 1BP
