In this talk, Extra City director Anselm Franke will sketch-out the connections between the exhibition of drawings by Sergei Eisenstein and the upcoming group exhibition Animism, which is due to open in early 2010 in MuHKA and Extra City, for which the exhibition 'Sergei Eisenstein: The Mexican Drawings' has served as an introductory historical backdrop.

As a concept, 'animism' emerged in the 19th century in the context of anthropology and ethnography, describing 'primitive' belief systems in which objects are thought to have a life of their own, and the subjective contents, such as images and emotions, are projected onto the outer world. Not unlike many seminal modern artists who undertook similar voyages, Eisenstein's time in Mexico was characterized by an encounter and fascination with the 'primitive' and, particularly, with the social, political and aesthetical implications of 'animism'. Eisenstein, however, was keen on understanding 'animism' not merely as a pre-modern system, but as a key problem of modernity and modern art, above all, film. This presentation seeks to establish the contemporary relevance of Eisenstein's practice and research.

The exhibition 'Sergei Eisenstein: The Mexican Drawings' remains open to the public before and after the lecture.

Language English