Fundació Antoni Tàpies brings together three films by Basim Magdy
The works of the Egyptian creator are an immersive sensory experience in which reality is blurred with fiction.
The audiovisual pieces by the artist Basim Magdy (Assiut, Egypt, 1977) appeal to dreams. "What will you remember when you wake up from a dream? What will you remember when you are awake?", the visitor is asked at the exhibition the Fundació Antoni Tàpies is currently hosting with three films by the Egyptian artist. Entitled Basim Magdy. A Series of Flickering Dreams, the exhibition is part of the Loop Fesival Barcelona 2022 and is curated by Carolina Ciuti.
The exhibition brings together three short films. Crystal Ball is from 2013 and is a seven-minute double-feature shot in Super 8 and black and white transferred to HD video. The Dent, from 2014, is 19 minutes long and was shot on 16mm commissioned by Abraaj Group Art Prizej. The most recent is FEARDEATHLOVEDEATH, from 2022, just over 17 minutes and also on 16mm; in this case, the commission came from Röda Sten Konsoll, Gothenburg, Sweden. In all three cases, reality blends with fiction and the veracity of a vision loses its urgency. What is really important is a new horizon of possibilities, where past, present and future collapse and a new interpretation emerges. The logic of those following the projection is immediately replaced by the immersive sensory experience generated by the montage, with sound as a determining factor in creating the sensation of an immersive environment.
Basim Magdy. A Series of Flickering Dreams will be open to the public until 8 January. For more information about the exhibition, click on the link.