Madame B Museum Aboa Vetus & Ars Nova, Turku (Finland)
With the classic text of Gustave Flaubert as its starting point, this multi-channel installation is scheduled for exhibition internationally from early 2014. A work about the link between capitalism and romance, Mieke Bal and Michelle Williams Gamaker’s revisionist take on the 19th century novel was filmed in Åland, Finland in summer 2012 and Paris, France in winter 2013. The installations bring together the talents of actors Marja Skaffari, Thomas Germaine and Mathieu Montanier and many others. By creating deliberate anachronism and intertextuality, the work attempts to show how Flaubert was in many ways a post-modernist and feminist. It explores the way dominant ideologies – specifically capitalism and its association with emotions, and romantic love with its commercial aspects – are still dominant after 150 years. The Madame B. installation offers a radically new interpretation of the text, replete with powerful symbolism that evokes this reimagining. In this way, it questions visually the role of women in a society driven by masculine impulses. The installation pieces explore different visual modes, and demonstrate how these have themselves the power to create an immersive experience.
The exhibition is complemented by a discussion group focusing on the novel and the installation. The group will meet at the museum on three separate occasions during the spring of 2017, on Sundays from 1pm to 3pm. The meetings involve viewing sections of the Madame B installation and discussing both the novel and the installation regarding their themes and similarities. The videos contain both direct references to Flaubert’s novel and keen observations on our own modern culture.
Doctor Päivi Kosonen, a literary scholar and therapist specializing in French literature, will be leading the discussion based on the video installation and novel. Special attention will be paid to the participants’ own viewing and reading experiences. Reading the novel is not mandatory for taking part in the meetings, though reading it beforehand or between meetings might enrich your viewing experience and discussion.
Meetings:
Sunday 26 March from 1pm to 3 pm: Adolescence and Dreams
Sunday 23 April from 1pm to 3pm: Boredom and Passion
Sunday 21 may from 1pm to 3pm: Suffocating Void and Freedom