Close Up

19 March - 23 June 2023: Kenneth Anger: Magick Lantern Cycle

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Cinematic magician, legendary provocateur, author of the infamous Hollywood Babylon book, Kenneth Anger is a unique figure in post-war American culture. His iconic short films are characterised by a mystical-symbolic visual language and phantasmagorical-sensual opulence that underscores the medium’s transgressive potential. Anger’s work fundamentally shaped the aesthetics of 1960s and 1970s subcultures, the visual lexicon of pop and music videos and queer iconography. These nine films form the basis of Anger’s reputation as one of the most influential pioneers of avant-garde film and video art.

Fireworks, 1947, 14 min
Puce Moment, 1949, 6 min
Rabbit's Moon, 1950/1971, 16 min
Eaux d'Artifice, 1953, 13 min
Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, 1954, 37 min
Scorpio Rising, 1964, 28 min
Kustom Kar Kommandos, 1965, 3 min
Invocation of My Demon Brother, 1969, 11 min
Lucifer Rising, 1981, 27 min