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M+, Hong Kong, © Joan Jonas/EAI/ARS
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Mediatheque
Joan Jonas 瓊．喬納斯
Vertical Roll 垂直滾動
1972
A highly influential piece of early video art, this work makes the medium of video itself the primary focus. For a duration of nearly twenty minutes, Joan Jonas performed in front of the camera in a variety of costumes and states of undress, to the rhythmic striking of a spoon against a hard surface. The sound accompanies the scrolling effect and conspicuous black bars of a ‘vertical roll’, transforming a visual accident of video recording into an intentional aesthetic device. By interrupting the electronic signals of her video equipment, Jonas renders the medium ambiguous and disjointed rather than seamless or naturalistic. In the closing moments of the work, the artist stands in front of the video and stares into the camera, deepening her exploration of self-representation and technological mediation.
In the dynamic art scene of 1960s New York, Jonas was an important pioneer in the development of video art. She explored the formal qualities of video, often staging performance artworks with the city as a framing environment. She regularly cast fellow artists as performers, or else collaborated with them to film the works. Sculpture and drawing have also been critical to her artistic oeuvre, forming part of a continuum with her time-based performances and video art.
In the dynamic art scene of 1960s New York, Jonas was an important pioneer in the development of video art. She explored the formal qualities of video, often staging performance artworks with the city as a framing environment. She regularly cast fellow artists as performers, or else collaborated with them to film the works. Sculpture and drawing have also been critical to her artistic oeuvre, forming part of a continuum with her time-based performances and video art.
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