Bard College Alumni/ae Association Presents
Seattle, WA - Michelle Handelman '01 in Video Installation
Saturday, July 11, 2015
Henry Art Gallery, 15th Ave NE & NE 41st St, Seattle
The Henry presents the West Coat premiere of the multichannel video installation Irma Vep, The Last Breath (2013) by Michelle Handelman '01. Irma Vep – an anagram for vampire – is the lead female character of Les Vampires (1915, dir. Louis Feuillade, 1915 – 16), a French silent, serial film about a gang of thieves that terrorizes the upper class of Parisian society.In Handelman’s contemporary reconsideration of Feuillade’s classic, the legacy of screen criminal Irma Vep comes alive in the body of transgender artist and performer Zackary Drucker (Transparent). A non-linear narrative and psychological portrait unfolds as Irma Vep exchanges dialogue with her therapist and encounters the real-life actress who played her, Musidora, in the form of drag icon Flawless Sabrina (The Queen). Starkly illuminated projections and a dramatic audio score envelop viewers in a story of queer identity, criminal anxiety, and a life within the shadows of society. Irma Vep, The Last Breath features a score by Quentin Chiappetta (Christian Marclay's The Clock) and costumes by Garo Sparo and award- winning fashion collective threeASFOUR.
This marks the 100-year anniversary of Les Vampires,and in celebration the Henry will host a series of screenings and talks, ranging from a profile of the film’s female lead, Musidora, to the cultural history of the catsuit.
For more information, call 206-616-9625, e-mail [email protected],
or visit http://henryart.org.
Location: Henry Art Gallery, 15th Ave NE & NE 41st St, Seattle