Negation, 1972, 4′ 06”, 35 mm
The film is an example of recreating a predetermined model situation in which the word NO was recorded with sound and image. Starting from a blank sheet of paper, on subsequent frames, those typed on a typewriter were NOT multiplied from one to 108 times. After the whole page was filled in, the situation was reversed and in the following frames the word did NOT disappear until a blank page appeared. After each appearance and disappearance of the word, a black frame followed with an audio notation – the artist’s voice repeating the word NOT spoken each time in the same intonation. Both pictures with ascending and descending word notation were accompanied by the same, uniform audio notation. The formal rigor of this simple realization has almost been brought to the point of absurdity.
