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Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund; Double Lunar Dogs; Joan Jonas in Double Lunar Dogs

Part of New Television Workshop.

"Double Lunar Dogs," 1984, is an impressionistic, dramatic work by video artist Joan Jonas. It juxtaposes several scenes to create the picture of the life of the inhabitants of a traveling spaceship, whose destination has long since been forgotten, and who remember life on earth as it has been passed down to them from their ancestors on board the ship. The work addresses the question of what these travelers remember of Earth. In this short sequence, two women paint each other's portraits on transparent glass panels. Approximate date: 1984


License Clip
Series
Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund
Program
Double Lunar Dogs
Title

Joan Jonas in Double Lunar Dogs

Series Description

Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund -- WGBH's collaboration with the Institute Of Contemporary Art (ICA) -- offers a co-venture among TV producers from seven countries, each seeking to capture the spirit of a specific environment. Titles include: O PANAMA: a video by James Benning and Burt Barr evoking the mental landscape of a sick man confined to his apartment; TIME CODE; L'IMAGE; STORM AND STRESS; SOLOS, DUETS AND PIZZA: Three dance videos: "Rotary Action", a duet featuring Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane; "Watermotor for Dancer and Camera", with Trisha Brown, and "From and Island Summer", with Karole Armitage; SET & RESET (#4) VERSION 1: Choreographer Trisha Brown performs to music by Laurie Anderson in this video dance piece DAMNATION OF FAUST: story of Marguerite of the Faust legend; MORE TV STORIES: satirizing the relationship between people and their TVs; NEW ENGLAND FISHERMEN - Joan Logue's brief vignettes of fishermen. Series release date: 1985

Program Description

“Double Lunar Dogs,” 1984, is an impressionistic, dramatic work by video artist Joan Jonas. It juxtaposes several scenes to create the picture of the life of the inhabitants of a traveling spaceship, whose destination has long since been forgotten, and who remember life on earth as it has been passed down to them from their ancestors on board the ship. The inhabitants of the ship appear to be two women and three men. Poetic narration by some of the characters gives points of reference for the montages and scenes of images. Of the two narrators, the male defends the way of life aboard the ship, appearing more and more as some sort of commander or dictator. The female narrator is more questioning. Various art forms are incorporated into the work. At one point one of the men performs a movement sequence with a rod. The two women paint each other’s portraits on transparent glass panels. The work addresses the question of what these travelers remember of Earth. Occasionally, images of Earth appear, as do scenes of the ocean and of NASA space footage.

Asset Type

Clip

Media Type

Video

Subjects
Interstellar travel
Memory
Jonas, Joan, 1936-
Krosen, Jill
Topics
Film and Television
Publication Information
WGBH Educational Foundation
Citation
Chicago: “Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund; Double Lunar Dogs; Joan Jonas in Double Lunar Dogs,” GBH Archives, accessed March 29, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_F2B912A52C70406690BCE0B200794056.
MLA: “Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund; Double Lunar Dogs; Joan Jonas in Double Lunar Dogs.” GBH Archives. Web. March 29, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_F2B912A52C70406690BCE0B200794056>.
APA: Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund; Double Lunar Dogs; Joan Jonas in Double Lunar Dogs. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_F2B912A52C70406690BCE0B200794056
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