Joan Logue: Video Portraits

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FIRST VIDEO PORTRAIT 1971
My work in video portraiture began in 1971 while working in Sucromu, a West African bush community. One morning as I was setting up my video portapac, a young boy from the village stood in front of my camera. He stared silently into the lens. It was at this moment I realized that the face is in a constant state of flux; the real time video exposes and makes public the sequences of silent thoughts.

West Africa: Outside Looking In
Women Working Sucromu Liberia 1971Sucromu Liberia 1971
Weaver & Tailor Sucromu Liberia 1971Sucromu Liberia 1971

AMERICAN ARTISTS 1975-1989
Through an intimate and elegant use of the medium, Joan Logue pioneered and defined the art of video portraiture. I have found that artists like silence, and in the video portraits the viewer is allowed a personal view of an artist in his own private thoughts and world. Original length of silent portraits for installations: 10-20 minutes each.

CIVIL RIGHTS PIONEERS
Civil Rights Pioneers Rosa Parks and Cesar Chavez portraits were both made in 1989. Graciously, both Mrs. Parks and Mr. Chavez agreed to sit for their video portraits in silence. The viewer is now able to observer for him or herself, these two exceptional Americans who fought for our human dignity. Later I took my portrait of Rosa Parks from 1989 and joined it with the 2009 ceremonial Inauguration of President Obama 2009.

Rosa Parks 1989 MI1989 MI
Cesar Chavez 1989 CA1989 CA
Rosa Parks & Barack Obama 20092009

FAMILY PORTRAIT SERIES 1979-1980
Original length: vary in length from 2 minutes - 20 minutes each.

Chicago South Side Family: Mother‚ Father‚ Daughter and Grandmother 19791979
Katherine Murphy and Family 19791979
Michael Nyman's Daughters New York 1981New York 1981
Self Portrait with Mother: Joan Logue and Helen Logue 1978Joan Logue and Helen Logue 1978
Mother and Son: Martha Wilson and Son
Mother and Son: Marianna and David
Father and Daughter: John Rockwell and Daughter Sasha 2001John Rockwell and Daughter Sasha 2001

THE NEIGHBORHOOD SERIES 1972-2005
Each Neighborhood Series include approximately ten portraits per series. Original length: Portraits in these series range from 10-20 minutes each.

Venice California 1974-19761974-1976
Little Italy New York 19771977
Soho New York 19781978
South Side Chicago 19781978
Montbeliard Eastern France 19811981
Marais Paris France 1982-19831982-1983
Montpellier Southern France 19831983
Saragossa Spain 1983 - Coming Soon1983 - Coming Soon
Rennes France 1983 - Coming Soon1983 - Coming Soon
Normandy France 1990 - Coming Soon1990 - Coming Soon
Digi Girls 20042004
Central Park The Gates 20052005

VIDEO PORTRAIT: SELF PORTRAITS
Original length : vary from 2 seconds to 15 minutes.

Self Portrait with Mother. 1979 1979
Auto Portrait. 1972-1983 1972-1983
Self Portrait Post 911. 2001 2001

PORTRAITS FOR INSTALLATION
Original length of silent portraits for installation: 10-20 minutes each. ©1971-2010 A subject being recorded cannot hide behind his or her smile for long; thoughts and feelings begin to be exposed without verbal expression. The viewer is confronted with this contemplation and silence, witnessing a person speaking within him or herself. The Silent Video Portraits were made to be seen as the next step in portraiture - - A portrait in real time.

9 Portraits 9 Women - Coming Soon 19891989
New York and Brazil Homeless Installation - Coming Soon 19891989
"For I loved him and he didn't love back" 19851985
In Memory of Dany Block 19891989
Portrait of a Young Woman: 3D Frame 19911991
Don Buchla 19851985
John Cage 19791979
Jacques Derrida 19851985

RENE AND GEORGETTE AND THEIR DOG AFTER THE WAR
René and Georgette Magritte With Their Dog After The War - Originally produced as a music video for Paul Simon’s song, this video is a tribute to Magritte’s work and a visual interpretation of Simon’s music and lyrics. This video won many awards for its unique and first time use of the Mirage and ADO to create the technologically surreal images. It was premièred on Saturday Night Live, January 1984.

René and Georgette and Their Dog After the War

BERLIN SERIES 1986 - COMING SOON

KAMALA CESAR: BHARATA NATYAM
Artists performing and explains the traditional dance of South India. Original Length: 4 minutes, 1995.

Kamala Cesar Bharata NatyamBharata Natyam

VALENTINE SERIES: CALIFORNIA FRIENDS. 1976
The Valentine Series was a made in celebration of couples, friends, living in Venice California on Valentines Day. Each portrait varies in length.

Peter & Liz Gould 19741974
Claude & Bessy Philmena 19741974
Conie Lou Ellen & Peter Barlett 19741974
David James & JoAnne Edmonds 19741974
David & Peggy Ross 19741974
Ed Moses & Nancy Drew 19741974
Elizabeth Friedman & Patrick Patterson 19741974
Jack Destiny 19741974
Joe & Chris Crash 19741974
John Baker & Jan Shippard 19741974
John Hunt & Judith Binder 19741974
John Sturgeon & Aysha Quinn 19741974
Lita Albuquereuq & Steve Kahn 19741974
Mark & Georgie Ross 19741974
Peter Kirby & Sarah Tamore 19741974

NEW YORK ARTIST, 30 SECOND PORTRAITS 1979-1982
Inverting the form, style and time frame of commercial television advertising, Logue has produced a unique series of dynamic video portraits of avant-garde artists, writers, musicians and performers.

FRENCH ARTIST, 30 SECOND PORTRAITS 1982-1983
30 Second Spots: Paris focuses on prominent artists, writers, philosophers and musicians working in Paris. Using elegant special effects, close-ups, and a highly condensed time frame, Logue captures her subjects in moments of intimacy and contemplation.

Pierre Boulez‚ Composer
David Hockney‚ Painter
Philippe Sollers‚ Writer
Maurice Roche‚ Poet‚ Writer
Orlan Performance‚ Artist
Andreas Senser‚ Painter
Jean-Claude Eloy‚ Composer
Dominique Desanti‚ Writer
Robert Doisneau‚ Photographer
Philippe Sollers‚ Writer
Takis‚ Painter
Valere Novarina‚ Writer Performance
Jochen Gerz Performance‚ Artist
Jean-Toussaint Desanti‚ Writer
Julia Kristeva and Son David
Tod Machover‚ Composer
Jacques Monory‚ Painter
Ushio Amagatsu‚ Performance Artist
Stewart Sherman

SAN FRANCISCO ARTIST, 30 SECOND PORTRAITS 1984
Logue tailors the style and content of each succinct portrait to complement the idiosyncratic nature of the artist’s work.

Anna Halprin‚ Dancer 19841984
Star Sutherland‚ Video-Artist 19841984
Diamanda Galas‚ Composer Performance 19841984
Tim Hatch Earthquake 19841984
Donald Buchla‚ Composer 19841984

FRENCH WRITERS, 30 SECOND PORTRAITS 1985
Logue merges image with spoken and written text in Video Portraits: French Writers, utilizing elegant video techniques to illustrate the words of such prominent authors and theorists as Jacques Derrida, Andre Du Bouchet, and Florence Delay.

Jacques Derrida
Florence DeLay
Pascal Quignard
Andre Du Bouchet
Danielle Sallenave
Michel DeGuy
Claude Ollier
Michel Rio
Pierrette Fleutiaux
Claude Simon

NEW ENGLAND FISHERMEN, 30 SECOND STORIES 1984-1985
Presented with a straightforward charm, Logue’s abbreviated portraits of fishermen in Gloucester and Boston Massachusetts are more than mere “fish stories.” Seen on their boats in the open sea, the fishermen speak directly to the camera, relating anecdotes and observations that are alternately comic or poignant.

Dominic Montagnino‚ right place
Thomas Randazza‚ Sea sickness
Romeo Solviletti‚ Different kind of fish like people
John Parisi‚ 50 years
Kenneth Cotto‚ An old fish story
Thomas Parisi
Thomas Silveira‚ Lobster fishing
Thomas Randazza‚ Vacation on a boat
Palazola & Marino‚ Fixing net
Thomas Randazza‚ No life for a kid
John Quince‚ I was scared
Joseph Curcuru‚ Same bait
Anthony Palazola‚ Telling us
Joseph Piscitello‚ Sent the kids to college

5 COMPOSERS 5 COUNTRIES:
England, Italy, France, Spain and USA. 1988

Original Length: 3-5 minutes each, 8mm video. 1988. Five Composers, Five countries Original Length: 305 minutes, 8mm video. 1988.
Five Composers, Five Countries, portrays five contemporary composers from five separate countries. Each composer was commissioned to write a three-minute mini opera to be collectively produced by their own nation. My OTV (Opera TV) was to be seen like MTV. The operas were never made, but their remains small video portraits of each composer as well the documentation of the storyboard creation for each of the five operas.

Michael Nyman England England
Carles Santos Spain Spain
Alvin Curran Italy Italy
Michael Levinas France France
Tod Machover USA USA

DIGITAL LIMNINGS:
Traditional Dancers: Burma, China, Hawaii, Japan, North India, South India, Spain. 2001
In the Renaissance, kings rarely traveled to find a bride: instead, an artist was sent to paint her likeness, producing miniature portraits called "Limnings" Today, my video limnings are made to be seen as wearable art; to wear ones memories in a video pin.

Traditional Dancers: Burma 20012001
Traditional Dancers: China 20012001
Traditional Dancers: Japan 20012001
Traditional Dancers: North India 20012001
Traditional Dancers: Korea 20012001
Traditional Dancers: East India 20012001
Traditional Dancers: Hawaii 20012001
Traditional Dancers: Spain 20012001