Inverted Birth, 2014. Gallery 2
Ancestors, 2012. Gallery I
Air Martyr and Fire Martyr, 2014. Gallery 3
Water Martyr and Earth Martyr, 2014. Gallery 3
Inverted Birth, 2014. Video/sound installation. Color high-definition video projection on screen mounted vertically and anchored to floor in dark room. Projected image size: 16 ft 5 in. x 9 ft 3 in. (5 x 2.81 m) 8:22 minutes. Performer: Norman Scott. Ed. 2/3
Ancestors, 2012. Color High-Definition video on plasma display mounted vertically on wall. 61 1/4 x 36 3/8 x 5 in. (155.5 x 92.5 x 12.7 cm) 21:41 minutes. Performers: Kwesi Dei, Sharon Ferguson. Ed. 2/5
Air Martyr, 2014. Color High-Definition video on plasma display mounted vertically on wall. 42 3/8 x 24 1/2 x 2 5/8 in. (107.6 x 62.1 x 6.8 cm) 7:10 minutes. Executive producer: Kira Perov. Performer: Sarah Steben. AP 2 / 2
Earth Martyr, 2014. Color High-Definition video on plasma display mounted vertically on wall. 42 3/8 x 24 1/2 x 2 5/8 in. (107.6 x 62.1 x 6.8 cm) 7:10 minutes. Executive producer: Kira Perov. Performer: Sarah Steben. AP 2 / 2
Fire Martyr, 2014. Color High-Definition video on plasma display mounted vertically on wall. 42 3/8 x 24 1/2 x 2 5/8 in. (107.6 x 62.1 x 6.8 cm) 7:10 minutes. Executive producer: Kira Perov. Performer: Sarah Steben. AP 2 / 2
Water Martyr, 2014. Color High-Definition video on plasma display mounted vertically on wall. 42 3/8 x 24 1/2 x 2 5/8 in. (107.6 x 62.1 x 6.8 cm) 7:10 minutes. Executive producer: Kira Perov. Performer: Sarah Steben. AP 2 / 2
Inverted Birth, 2014
OPENING RECEPTION: THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 6-8 PM
James Cohan is pleased to present Inverted Birth, the gallery’s seventh solo exhibition by internationally acclaimed video artist Bill Viola, on view from December 10, 2015 through January 30, 2016. Featured are six major works created between 2012 and 2014: Ancestors (2012), Inverted Birth (2014), and four pieces from the Martyrs series, Earth Martyr, Air Martyr, Fire Martyr, and Water Martyr (all 2014).
Regarded as a seminal figure in the development of video art, Viola has been celebrated throughout his 40-year career for combining state-of-the-art technology with universal humanistic themes – birth, death, and the unfolding of consciousness. These themes continue in Viola’s Inverted Birth, which explores the life cycle as a continuum rather than a linear progression. Viola has remarked, “Birth is not a beginning, death is not an end.