Course description

In 2003, Valie Export surmised: “The electronic cinema bids farewell to the commercial fairy tale of film as mimesis, for in the electronic film, the image has no place: it occupies space.” With the availability of different media recorders and players, we see more and more video and film that take part in an installation, and some installations are made entirely of projections of video and film. This course will focus on the means and meaning of the projected image, in relation to spatial politics, psychoanalytic conceptions of ‘projection/projecting’, architectural space, the history of cinematic viewing and cinematic time, and how non-linear, interactive time of installation affects the audience. We will unpack the potentialities of expanded cinema in the present moment as an event and a site composed of the simulation of space and time, extending beyond the simulation of reality. Students will learn to create and present video installations using video projectors, monitors, screens, speakers, and live streaming. The course will explore the impact of history, access, culture, and technological shifts on the work of artists and filmmakers in the realm of video, film, recorded performance and installation.

This advanced-level, hybrid practice course will include reading discussions, critique of artworks and site-specific research. Weekly classes will shift between screening and reading discussions, in-class work time, and critiques of students’ projects. Exhibit visits and artist lectures may be included based on local exhibit programing. Students are required to create self-designed projects that demonstrate their ability to synthesize their ideas, understanding of moving image content, language of editing, presentation format, viewer positioning and site relation. Students are encouraged to expand the current themes and methods within their art or research practices by experimenting with various video installation strategies, such as: video mapping to 3D objects; site-specific architectural projections; multi-channel projection environments; mixing moving image content with live performance, wearable sculpture, live feeds or other elements that may interest the student. Independent research and transdisciplinary projects are encouraged and welcome. Readings include: Rizvana Bradley, Claire Bishop, Giuliana Bruno, Sianne Ngai, Fred Moten and Hito Steyerl.  Artists include: Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, Patty Chang, Valie Export, Teiji Furuhashi, Chitra Ganesh, Wyn Geleynse, Isaac Julien, Christopher Harris, Taka Iimura, Nalini Malani, Davy & Kristin McGuire, Rasheed Newsome, Tony Oursler, The Illuminator, Nam June Paik, Cauleen Smith, Wu Tsang and more….

Prerequisites: This class is open to graduate and upper-level undergraduate students with the technical skills to create moving image content in any format, including: video, film, animation, computer-generated imagery, etc.  Students must have completed E4 orientations and ladder training. 

Faculty Bio:H. Lan Thao Lam is Assistant Professor of Fine Arts, in the School of Art, Media, and Technology at Parsons. Born in My Tho, Vietnam, they hold an MFA from California Institute of the Arts, was a Whitney Museum Independent Study fellow, and considers their experiences in refugee camps and housing projects also part of her education.

Their practice is at the intersection of research, object-making, installation, film, video, writing and performance. Since 2001, they have been active as artist duo “Lin + Lam,” producing projects about immigration, sites of residual trauma, national identity and historical memory. Their work has been exhibited and screened internationally at venues, including 2018 Busan Biennale, The Kitchen, The New Museum, Queens Museum, NY; 3rd Guangzhou Triennial; Arko Art Center, Korean Arts Council, Seoul, Korea; Taiwan International Documentary Festival, Taipei; rum46, Denmark; Cold City Gallery and Lennox Contemporary, Toronto. He has been awarded the Canada Council for the Arts – Media Art Grant, Vera List Center for Art and Politics Fellowship, H.L. Rous Sculpture Award, and James Robertson Environmental Design Award. Lam’s work has been reviewed in numerous publications, including Art Forum, the New York Times, Art Journal, The Huffington Post, Time Out Hong Kong and Art Asia Pacific.

Lam is 2018-2020 Faculty Fellow, India China Institute at The New School.

Photo by Darren O’Brien/Guzelian
Picture shows A visitor looks at Face to Face, 2013 by Anthony McCall, The Hepworth Wakefield, Wakefield.
The exhibition Anthony McCall: Solid Light Works opens 16 Feb – 3 June 2018 at The Hepworth WakefIeld.
Picture taken 14/02/2018