Chantal Akerman

About

Chantal Akerman is widely regarded as one of the most significant artists and film directors of her generation. For this, her first solo exhibition in a UK public gallery, she shows two installations alongside a single screen film from 1972 'Hotel Monterey'. Akerman was profoundly influenced by Jean-Luc Godard's 'Pierrot le fou' (1965), and enrolled at film school in Belgium. She then abandoned her studies to produce her first short film 'Saute Ma Vie' (1968). Working outside the norms of length, plot, visualisation and address she became a leading figure in European experimental cinema in the 1970s. Her films shift between experimental, documentary and narrative formats and are all closely related to feminism, sexuality and her family history (Polish Jews who moved to Belgium after the war). 'To Walk Next to One's Shoelaces in an Empty Fridge' (2004) is an enigmatic two part video installation that traces the content of Akerman's maternal grandmother's adolescent diary. This rare document was miraculously discovered after she perished at Auschwitz. 'Women from Antwerp in November' (2007) contains a compelling series of images reminiscent of early French and American film noir. Two projections feature women smoking in different settings; the compendium of images carries social, political and emotional implications. Akerman's films are highly personal, beautiful and witty.