Leslie Thornton is a pioneer of experimental and avant garde media; her career spans over 30 years and encompasses a variety of mediums; beginning with painting and moving into film, video, photography and installation. Her impact on the development of and experimentation with the moving image is almost immeasurable, indicated in small part by her numerous international accolades and awards.
“Radical Symmetry”, Leslie’s first solo exhibition in China, is a combination of all these explorations. In works from the Binocular Series, two circular fields are displayed: one shows an animal in its environment, while the other circle displays a fractured, kaleidoscopic view of the same animal and its movement. Extraordinary cinematography, detailed observation and masterful technique unite to unveil and characterize complex animal behavior in a seemingly simplistic visual form. In representing pairs of images via two circular visual fields, Thornton allows the viewer to observe the animal’s activity while drawing attention to specific behaviours through the corresponding fragmented vision.
The two images are intrinsically linked, bound together in conflicted synthesis, exposing intricate undercurrents of movement and behavior. The flicker of an eyelid or pulse of a muscle triggers an explosion of movement in the opposing field, transforming the animal’s actions from routine behavior to vibrant expressions of colour and texture. Through visual representation and abstraction, the observer is at once transfixed, astonished and inspired.
Artist's Statement
It makes sense that today a number of artists and writers are examining the animal world and our relation to other living beings. Animals are the new “Other” and the new victims, post multi-culturalism and globalization. But it's all the same thing in a way; discourse on power, vulnerability, the unknown, the oppressed, difference, loss, growth, resilience. For me, there is just so much to learn here, so much to care about, and I approach my new subjects in complete and utter awe, with a sense of heightened awareness.
- Leslie Thornton
About the Artist
Leslie Thornton has long been considered a master of contemporary media aesthetics, working at the borders and limits of cinema, video and digital media. Thornton is a legendary and influential filmmaker, considered an innovator in her field and is one of the first artists to bridge the gap between film and video. Thornton’s work has been internationally acclaimed and awarded since she first began making films in 1976. Having made over 20 films, her major works include the 25 year long serial Peggy and Fred in Hell, an episodic post apocalyptic which has become a classic of the American Avant-garde cinema; as well as Adynata, her seminal film exploring perceptions of China and Orientalism; and Let Me Count The Ways: Minus 10, 9, 8, 7...a serial and ongoing moving portrait of her father, who was involved in some of the major events of the 20th Century.
More recently she has been making video installations under the collective title, The Binocular Series. The works are presented on flat screen monitors, which display two circular visual fields: one circle presents a variety of exquisitely filmed animals; while the other circle incorporates a fractured, kaleidoscopic view of the same animal and its movement.
Thornton's work is in the permanent collections of MoMA, Jeu de Paume, The Pompidou Center, Fundació Antonio Tàpies, Princeton University, Harvard University to list but a few. Her work is featured in film festivals, museums and galleries worldwide.
Her numerous awards and accolades include three Rockefeller Fellowships, The Maya Deren Award for Lifetime Achievement, The Alpert Award in the Arts for Media, and nominations for the Hugo Boss Award. As a professor at Brown University, Thornton has been instrumental in building one of the most progressive media arts programs in the United States. Her works have had a profound impact and an enduring influence on an entire generation of media artists, critics and theorists.
