In the late 1990s, Art21 artist Charles Atlas created a series of video collages for Martha@Mother at the infamous and now defunct downtown New York nightclub Mother.
The non-advertised but very popular monthly event was a send-up of modern dance and in 1998 the New York Times described the event as:
…a satiric character study of Graham as artist, diva and publicity hound…as well as a loving tribute to modern dance and its practitioners. The combination of serious dance and high camp was devised by…[Richard] Move…in collaboration with Janet Stapleton….[they] wanted to create an event that fused their shared love for both contemporary choreography and the sweaty energy of the club scene.
On Saturday, December 20, Atlas will be screening most of these collage videos and appear in person for intermittent discussion and commentary.
Atlas has been active as an interdisciplinary filmmaker and video artist since the 1970s. Over the years he has made pioneering media/dance works, multi-channel video installations, feature-length documentaries, video art works for television, and live electronic performances.
He has collaborated with countless choreographers and performers, including Marina Abramovic, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Leigh Bowery, Merce Cunningham, Diamanda Galas, Bill Irwin and Yvonne Rainer.
In November 2006, London’s Tate Modern honored him with a retrospective of his work, which was titled Hail the New Puritan.
This is a must for fans of Atlas’ irreverent brand of video. Event info:
Saturday, December 20th, 8 PM to 11 PM
Doors open from 7:30 to 10:30 PM
541 Broadway (between Prince and Spring) 3rd Floor, New York City
Free admission