16 Hours

Nooshin Farhid

There is an apocalyptic theme that runs through this video; its structure is one of fragmentation and visual complexity in which strands of narrative are interwoven throughout the 16 minutes of its duration. These incomplete narrative strands are instrumental in referring to elements in a society that is in itself fragmenting and collapsing. We are presented with the real and the metaphorical, the actual and the symbolic as for instance documentary footage of prison violence is followed by images of recontextualised public spaces taken over by young skateboarders and ‘graphitiied’ to excess. This act of graphitii is in itself one of personal protest, a disruption of the state. Holding this collage of images together is the constant reminder of time winding down towards a final moment, that of demolition – the taking down of a structure in place. There is no redemptive possibility put forward here, the video constantly presents us with sub cultures, communities and groups existing outside the mainstream. This antagonism played out in the video’s content is made more visually powerful through the use of material derived from a wide range of sources and consequently different visual ‘qualities’ that have the effect of unsettling the viewing experience by creating a sense of agitation set against one of implication. Perhaps time is running out?