 Munro Galloway, Another quiet tear streaks down my face, Another night of desolation and solitude... Lazy J Video Ranch, through Sun 25. In keeping with the mission of this young gallery devoted to new media projects, Munro Galloway brings together stills and clips of urban landscapes from more than 50 Asian films by such directors as John Woo, Ringo Lane and Wong Kar-Wai. Moody, large-scale film stills wallpaper the gallery to create a haunting setting, while a television monitor in a mocked-up living room displays a hypnotic three-minute video loop. In the videotape, Asian cities—you might at any moment see bits of Tokyo or Hong Kong—blend together with scenes that often take place at night, and are variously menacing or serene. These filmic snapshots are set to a remix of Berlin's pop confection "Take My Breath Away." It's a very effective presentation. Another quiet tear streaks down my face, Another night of desolation and solitude... distills and amplifies the floating-world sensibility that often characterizes Asian films. The music video, coupled with the enormous stills, produces a suitably ambient environment, while the hollow drone of the pop tune accompanying this cinematic stream creates a slightly narcotic effect. But Galloway doesn't work out the themes he touches upon: Topics such as globalization, the exportation of Western culture and the growing similarities between contemporary art and advertising are here, yet remain uninterrogated. The exhibition confidently reconfigures such mass-media genres as music video, but to what end? Nevertheless, Galloway does offer the pleasure of viewing images released from the formal constraints of the multiplex and MTV. Viewers will be left intoxicated by this cinematic tri p through urban Asia. Enjoy the ride. -Karen E. Jones |
