Press release
Alejandro Jodorowsky: The Holy Mountain
On view May 22, 2011 - June 30, 2011
MoMA PS1 presents Alejandro Jodorowsky's 1973 cult film The Holy Mountain in a cinematic setting, played continuously with starting times at noon, 2 p.m., and 4 p.m. during regular museum hours in the Third Floor Main Gallery.
Known for his artistic elaborations of the occult, Jodorowsky (Chilean, b. 1929) eschews conventional narrative and emphasizes a baroque visual landscape of psychic and metaphysical complexity, claiming in the film-he plays the character the Alchemist-that "we are images, dreams, photographs."
Also taking up the roles of composer, set designer, and costume designer, Jodorowsky oversaw all facets of The Holy Mountain's production to keep to his singular vision. Additionally, he immersed the actors and collaborators in months of preparatory spiritual exercises, testing the potential for cinema to engage with mysticism.
Jodorowsky's film is a highly acclaimed absurdist and picaresque satire depicting the journey of a Christ-like figure, the Thief, to a symbolic mountain that is said to unite Heaven and Earth. Largely inspired by St. John of the Cross's 16th-century writing The Ascent of Mount Carmel and René Daumal's 1952 novel Mount Analogue, The Holy Mountain explores themes of capitalist production, militarism, death, rebirth, and the extramundane.
The Holy Mountain's cult status can be attributed to an unparalleled visual vocabulary that has captivated and challenged viewers. MoMA PS1 brings this experience to a wide audience and a new generation.
Selected in close collaboration with the artist, materials related to the film will be exhibited in the galleries adjacent to the screening room.
ARTBOOK @ PS1 is pleased to present numerous books, comics and DVDs by Jodorowsky for the duration of the exhibition for purchase in the bookstore.
Additionally, we are excited to announce that we have stock of a brand-new publication, Alejandro Jodorowsky, No. 014 from the yet-to-be-released dOCUMENTA (13) series 100 Notes / 100 Thoughts. Jodorowsky dedicated a voluminous notebook to the script for his film Dune, after the 1965 science-fiction novel of the same name by Frank Herbert, which was never completed and instead was directed by David Lynch. Jodorowsky's notebook contains the result of his encounters, conversations, and studies for the unmade film in the form of texts, collages, and diagrams, which are reproduced in color here in a selection. Alejandro Jodorowsky, $10, 48 p., color.
Alejandro Jodorowsky is a filmmaker, playwright, composer, and writer. In addition to The Holy Mountain, his most notable films include El Topo (1970) and Santa Sangre(1989). Jodorowsky is currently working on the sequel to El Topo as well as an autobiographical film, The Dance of Reality.
ARTBOOK @ MoMA PS1, 22-25 Jackson Avenue, Long Island City, NY
(718)433-1088 facebook.com/artbookat twitter.com/artbookat
email: [email protected]
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Alejandro Jodorowsky: The Holy Mountain
On view May 22, 2011 - June 30, 2011
MoMA PS1 presents Alejandro Jodorowsky's 1973 cult film The Holy Mountain in a cinematic setting, played continuously with starting times at noon, 2 p.m., and 4 p.m. during regular museum hours in the Third Floor Main Gallery.
Known for his artistic elaborations of the occult, Jodorowsky (Chilean, b. 1929) eschews conventional narrative and emphasizes a baroque visual landscape of psychic and metaphysical complexity, claiming in the film-he plays the character the Alchemist-that "we are images, dreams, photographs."
Also taking up the roles of composer, set designer, and costume designer, Jodorowsky oversaw all facets of The Holy Mountain's production to keep to his singular vision. Additionally, he immersed the actors and collaborators in months of preparatory spiritual exercises, testing the potential for cinema to engage with mysticism.
Jodorowsky's film is a highly acclaimed absurdist and picaresque satire depicting the journey of a Christ-like figure, the Thief, to a symbolic mountain that is said to unite Heaven and Earth. Largely inspired by St. John of the Cross's 16th-century writing The Ascent of Mount Carmel and René Daumal's 1952 novel Mount Analogue, The Holy Mountain explores themes of capitalist production, militarism, death, rebirth, and the extramundane.
The Holy Mountain's cult status can be attributed to an unparalleled visual vocabulary that has captivated and challenged viewers. MoMA PS1 brings this experience to a wide audience and a new generation.
Selected in close collaboration with the artist, materials related to the film will be exhibited in the galleries adjacent to the screening room.
ARTBOOK @ PS1 is pleased to present numerous books, comics and DVDs by Jodorowsky for the duration of the exhibition for purchase in the bookstore.
Additionally, we are excited to announce that we have stock of a brand-new publication, Alejandro Jodorowsky, No. 014 from the yet-to-be-released dOCUMENTA (13) series 100 Notes / 100 Thoughts. Jodorowsky dedicated a voluminous notebook to the script for his film Dune, after the 1965 science-fiction novel of the same name by Frank Herbert, which was never completed and instead was directed by David Lynch. Jodorowsky's notebook contains the result of his encounters, conversations, and studies for the unmade film in the form of texts, collages, and diagrams, which are reproduced in color here in a selection. Alejandro Jodorowsky, $10, 48 p., color.
Alejandro Jodorowsky is a filmmaker, playwright, composer, and writer. In addition to The Holy Mountain, his most notable films include El Topo (1970) and Santa Sangre(1989). Jodorowsky is currently working on the sequel to El Topo as well as an autobiographical film, The Dance of Reality.
ARTBOOK @ MoMA PS1, 22-25 Jackson Avenue, Long Island City, NY
(718)433-1088 facebook.com/artbookat twitter.com/artbookat
email: [email protected]
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