Meshes of the Afternoon at Roman Road

Artists: Nils Alix-Tabeling, Chelsea Culprit, Maria Gorodeckaya, Hanne Lippard, Gina Pane

Exhibition title: Meshes of the Afternoon

Curated by: Attilia Fattori Franchini

Venue: Roman Road, London, UK

Date: June 7 – August 20, 2017

Photography: all images copyright and courtesy of the artists and Roman Road, London

Symbols not in order of appearance: Shadow, Flower, Key, Mirror, Knife, Phone, Stairs

The networks are in ecstasies.

Roman Road is very pleased to present Meshes of the Afternoon, a group exhibition guest curated by Attilia Fattori Franchini.

Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) was the first experiment in film by feminist artist and director Maya Deren. The film was made for about $275 in the first months of Deren’s marriage to filmmaker Alexander Hammid. It was originally silent but Deren decided to later add an immersive soundtrack to it in 1959. The deeply psychological narrative shot at an iconic, modernist house in Los Angeles is cited as one of the most influential works of the noir genre and American avant-garde cinema; it has been reappropriated by various contemporary directors, including David Lynch along with many experimental filmmakers.

The central figure in Meshes of the Afternoon, played by Deren, is caught in a web of subconscious actions and events that blend with reality. Symbolic objects and archetypal characters, such as a key, a knife, a flower and a dark shadow, recur throughout the film. Events are open-ended and interrupted, pursuing not linear narratives but repetition, synchronicity and chance; the camera blends with the body of her protagonist, slowing resembling natural movements.

Deren’s interest in trance, dance and Haitian voodoo, led her to develop a specific body of work defined as “ethnographic surrealism,” aiming at blurring the boundaries between performance, ritual and the real world, and incorporating the primitive and magic worldview within the very film process.

Taking inspiration from Maya Deren’s iconic work, the exhibition invites a group of international artists to reinterpret the symbology of the film, celebrating its associative powers to reflect on femininity, the subconscious, dream states, trauma and desire.

The exhibition will include a performance by Emily Jones on the opening night. A screening of the film After Picasso, God by Sophie Cundale will also be shown on 01 July 2017 as part of the London Art Night. Meshes of the Afternoon opens on 06 June from 6-9pm and will be on display at Roman Road until 20 August 2017.

Meshes of the Afternoon, 2017, exhibition view, Roman Road, London

Chelsea Culprit, Rainbow Serpent, 2017. Neon, 100 x 120 cm. Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick

Gina Pane, Action Psyche (Essay), 1974. Set of 24 black and white photographs, 20 x 30 cm each (20.5 x 30.5 cm with frame). Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick

Maria Gorodeckaya, Geranium, 2017. Geranium plant, seeds, soil, wax pot, metal stick, Chanel jewellery, 60 x 56 x 56 cm. Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick

Maria Gorodeckaya, Knife, 2017. Glass wax and piercing rings, 31 x 4 x 2.5 cm. Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick

Maria Gorodeckaya, Knife (her), 2017. Glass wax, wood sticks, piercing rings and hair, 23 x 7 x 1.5 cm. Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick

Maria Gorodeckaya, Knife, 2017. Glass wax and piercing rings, 31 x 4 x 2.5 cm. Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick

Nils Alix-Tabeling, La Curée, Seine, 2017. Papier mâché, strass, aluminium flowers, dried flowers, 45 x 45 x 45 cm. Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick

Nils Alix-Tabeling, La Curée, Senne, 2017. Papier mâché, strass, aluminium flowers, dried flowers, chain, variable x 60 x 40 cm. Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick

Nils Alix-Tabeling, La Curée, Vaisselle, 2017. Papier mâché, strass, aluminium flowers, dried flowers, 40 x 40 x 35 cm. Courtesy of Roman Road and the artist. © Ollie Hammick