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Mediatheque
Dara Birnbaum 達拉．伯恩包姆
Damnation of Faust: Evocation 浮士德的天譴：招魂
1983
The first 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 by artist Dara Birnbaum uses the tools of video editing to expressive effect. With a contemporary New York City playground as a backdrop, Birnbaum mixes superimposed shots, layered transitions, and slow motion to mark her Faustian protagonist (a young woman seen reading and quietly reflecting) apart from the lively activity of the setting. The juxtapositions of imagery and the pace of Birnbaum’s editing suggest tensions between a search for knowledge and childhood innocence. Birnbaum highlights the conflict or gap between our inner thoughts and the outer social world.
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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