Open windows during the Advent season!
The Sammlung Goetz is exhibiting part of its media art collection online.
On each of the four weekends before Christmas, the Sammlung Goetz is presenting a film from its media art collection on its website’s homepage.
Dogs are said to be man’s best friend, but this adage does not apply to the dogs in the works of the Belgian artist Francis Alÿs. In his art, dogs are a disruptive factor wherever they appear. Daily encounters between humans and animals often have a humorous twist, as in the film The Last Clown (2001). In this short animation, Alÿs graphically captures the misadventure of a stroller lost in thought, who seems to stumble over a passing dog. The flickering black and white images, the accompanying jazz music and the gleeful laughter of the audience in the background recall the familiar slapstick scenes from the early days of film.
The short cinematic sequence is presented as a loop. Upon closer inspection of the scene’s endless repetition, however, it becomes apparent that the man is not tripping over the dog at all. Is it the animal’s supposed friendly tail-wagging that knocks the man of his feet, or is its mere appearance enough to send the contemplative passerby reeling?
The Last Clown refers to an experience Francis Alÿs once had. Viewers can learn more about it on the fourth weekend during the Advent period. Thereafter, the film, as well as an installation recording and an accompanying short text, will be on view on our homepage and, until the end of 2020, on our website at Sammlung Goetz Digital.
Dogs are said to be man’s best friend, but this adage does not apply to the dogs in the works of the Belgian artist Francis Alÿs. In his art, dogs are a disruptive factor wherever they appear. Daily encounters between humans and animals often have a humorous twist, as in the film The Last Clown (2001). In this short animation, Alÿs graphically captures the misadventure of a stroller lost in thought, who seems to stumble over a passing dog. The flickering black and white images, the accompanying jazz music and the gleeful laughter of the audience in the background recall the familiar slapstick scenes from the early days of film.
The short cinematic sequence is presented as a loop. Upon closer inspection of the scene’s endless repetition, however, it becomes apparent that the man is not tripping over the dog at all. Is it the animal’s supposed friendly tail-wagging that knocks the man of his feet, or is its mere appearance enough to send the contemplative passerby reeling?
The Last Clown refers to an experience Francis Alÿs once had. Viewers can learn more about it on the fourth weekend during the Advent period. Thereafter, the film, as well as an installation recording and an accompanying short text, will be on view on our homepage and, until the end of 2020, on our website at Sammlung Goetz Digital.