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Mediatheque
Dara Birnbaum 達拉．伯恩包姆
Damnation of Faust: Charming Landscape 浮士德的天譴：誘惑地景
1987
The final part of a three-part series drawing on Goethe’s famous tragic play—in which the scholar Faust makes a dangerous bargain with a demon in his pursuit of knowledge—this work showcases artist Dara Birnbaum’s expressive use of video editing and found footage. Birnbaum shows a playground-—a setting she used elsewhere the series—being demolished as two girls speak about their experiences and relationships. A collage of news footage of demonstrations and violent encounters, signifies the ways public space acts as a backdrop for both play and conflict. In context with the other works in the series, these juxtapositions underline how mass media shapes narratives in ways that sometimes contradict the memories of those who experienced them.
Initially trained in architecture, Birnbaum worked for New York–based architect and urban planner Lawrence Halprin before pursuing a painting degree, and later video editing training. Exploring the parallels in architecture and media’s shaping of public space and social relations, Birnbaum appropriates television footage and other popular imagery to critique the subtle power dynamics of mass media, often focusing on gender roles and women’s stories.
Initially trained in architecture, Birnbaum worked for New York–based architect and urban planner Lawrence Halprin before pursuing a painting degree, and later video editing training. Exploring the parallels in architecture and media’s shaping of public space and social relations, Birnbaum appropriates television footage and other popular imagery to critique the subtle power dynamics of mass media, often focusing on gender roles and women’s stories.
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