Reflections of spiritual and religious beliefs in a new era

American artist Bill Viola, 70, regarded as a pioneer of new media art, is presenting his video installation "Five Angels for the Millennium" at West Bund Museum in collaboration with Centre Pompidou.

Born in 1951 in the state of New York, Viola has been involved in radical electronic media experimentation since the early 1970s. Like some other artists of his generation, he realized a television screen could represent a new reality and connect distant cultures. From his early black-and-white experiments with video to the sophisticated treatments of his large high-definition projections, Viola's work is unique, with sensory experiences he destabilizes by playing with temporal paradoxes and perceptual ambiguities.

"Five Angels for the Millennium," created at the turn of the new millennium, is composed of five videos projected on walls in a dark gallery space. Each video features a clothed man rising out of and plunging into a pool of water at irregular intervals, as well as hovering over the pool in between movements.

Two performers, Josh Coxx and Andre Tritz, embody the five angels: "Departing Angel," "Birth Angel," "Fire Angel," "Ascending Angel" and "Creation Angel."

These enigmatic images were recorded by Viola in 1999 using an underwater camera in a pool in Long Beach, California.

Underwater lights were used to create subtle differences between blues and greens, with one take using a red light for "Fire Angel." The lights provided a heightened chiaroscuro effect.

During the editing process, the five takes were slowed down. Some were edited in reverse or upside down so the diving body seems to emerge from the depths, pulled up by a supernatural force.

The element of water is omnipresent, tinted with various colors. In a crescendo of sound that combines noises and indistinct voices, bodies suddenly cross one image or another.

The five videos play simultaneously but aren't synchronized. Each is repeated on a continuous loop, so the figures are seen repeatedly moving in and out of the water.

The installation's title implies the five angels have a certain relationship with the new millennium, inviting viewers to reflect on the state of religious and spiritual beliefs at the dawn of a new era. Charged with an unknown energy, it might suggest people occupy their own positions in this floating and suspended time.

Exhibition info

Dates: Through April 14 (closed on Mondays), 10am-5pm

Venue: West Bund Museum

Address: 2600 Longteng Avenue