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Peter Doig's alternative film posters at the CAC
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The Contemporary Art Centre (CAC) hosts first Spanish exhibition by the critically-acclaimed Scottish painter
The central space of the CACcurrently resembles an unusual type of cinema foyer, after the museum installed 166 alternative film posters, painted by illustrious artist Peter Doig, for its newest exhibition, Studiofilmclub.
Each of the paintings at the exhibition, which is being curated by Fernando Francés, was originally created for the film club that the artist established in 2003, which shares its title with that of the exhibition.
The idea behind the film club, which still operates from an old rum distillery on the island of Trinidad, where he was raised as a child and has returned to live and work as an adult, is to provide Trinidad audiences with the opportunity to see and discuss films that they were not able to access previously. When the film Orfeu Negro was due to be shown, Doig explains that he decided to recycle a painting he had started some time earlier, creating a depiction of a human figure reflected in water, to advertise the screening. From then on, he painted an alternative poster for every film that was screened by the Studiofilmclub.
It appears that all of the posters are based on or have been influenced by the movie they advertise. However, Doig has stated that “it’s not that literal”, explaining that instead “there’s a lot of fiction in my paintings—they are not drawn from my own experience, but more from imaginary spaces and experiences. Being authentic or realistic has never been an issue for me.”
The curator described Doig’s work as “a mixture of pop culture and art history,” and “ a combination of romanticism and sinister appeal.”
The exhibition will be on display until 25 June.
