Regular 8
chromogenic prints, 2009
each 40 x 42 inches or 40 x 63 inches

Sara Angelucci’s Regular 8 series returns film to its origin in the still image, while turning our attention to the post-war nuclear family of the 1950s. A period characterized by growing consumption, new mobility, and a large population aspiring to middle class success, it also witnessed the spread of eight millimeter or “Regular 8” home movies. Playing on the idiosyncratic interference caused by Kodak’s punch-hole tagging system—a series of numbers appearing across the end frames of each film – Angelucci makes poignant reference to the last moments of such films, where a series of white dots dances across the screen as the action winds to a close. Preserved, yet already in the process of dissolution, as evidenced by the invading punch holes, these images describe a moment of in-between. Existing somewhere between film theorist Andre Bazin’s characterization of photography and film, these photographic moments are suspended like “insects in amber” while shifting perpetually between frames as “change mummified.”

Referencing scenes from found and borrowed films, Angelucci’s staged photographs portray celebrations, holidays, and outings – where family and friends were often recast in idealized, cinematic versions of themselves. Here, everyone dressed up for, and played a role in, the portrayal of the happy family. By arresting such moments, Angelucci both celebrates and interrupts the formation of such identities, pointing to the tensions that may exist outside of the frame. Using the qualities of analogue photography as the basis for a hybrid digital practice, Angelucci dips into the wells of multiple histories and processes. In their convergence, she captures the still revolutionary force of the “mirror with a memory” to fascinate, disturb, and seduce.

—Katy McCormick

Regular 8  |  Artist Statement  |  Credits

Article: The view from inside the photograph (pdf)
by Kristen den Hartog (kristendenhartog.wordpress.com)