Haig Aivazian's Films Probe Surveillance and Power at The Showroom
Haig Aivazian's first solo UK exhibition at The Showroom in London features two films, 'Prometheus' (2019) and 'All of your Stars are but Dust on my Shoes' (2021), presented as a 40-minute loop. Both works use found footage from VHS tapes, YouTube videos, cartoons, and phone recordings to explore power dynamics in binaries like light/darkness and visibility/obscurity. 'Prometheus' links the 1992 US Olympic basketball 'Dream Team' live broadcasts and the 1991 Gulf War's 24-hour news coverage to argue that power lies in deciding when to shed light, not in visibility itself. 'All of your Stars are but Dust on my Shoes' examines surveillance history and resistance, featuring a woman in a hospital bed speaking Arabic against officials, ending with 'We will take our revenge with our own hands.' The exhibition runs until 19 March.
Key facts
- Haig Aivazian's first solo UK exhibition is at The Showroom, London.
- The exhibition consists of two films: 'Prometheus' (2019) and 'All of your Stars are but Dust on my Shoes' (2021).
- Both films are constructed from found footage including VHS tapes, YouTube videos, cartoons, and phone recordings.
- 'Prometheus' references the 1992 US Olympic basketball 'Dream Team' and the 1991 Gulf War.
- The 1992 Olympics were the first to air live in entirety by NBC and Cablevision.
- The 1991 Gulf War was the first armed conflict live-broadcast as part of the 24-hour news cycle by CNN.
- 'All of your Stars are but Dust on my Shoes' includes a woman in a hospital bed speaking out in Arabic against government officials.
- The exhibition is on view until 19 March.
- The films suggest power lies in deciding when to shed light, not in visibility.
- The work meditates on surveillance practices and resistance.
Entities
Artists
- Haig Aivazian
Institutions
- The Showroom
- NBC
- Cablevision
- CNN
- CIA
- NSA
Locations
- London
- United Kingdom
- Barcelona
- Spain