GBH Openvault
New Television; New Television, Episode 506; Plage Concrete
Part of New Television Workshop.
In "Plage Concrete," footage of museums, hotels, the interior of a nursing home, a mountain stop, and street scenes are woven together to create a mysterious and meditative narrative. Text is incorporated. A taxidermist speaks of the loss of artistic skills in that profession. Philosophical and statistical visual text provides a vast historical survey of uncertain purpose. Stuffed animals of museum quality are filmed. Select locations for the work include the Carnegie Museum, Falling Waters, Laurel Caverns, Negley House, and a Hilton hotel. Many of the primary images are repeated in new combinations. As the work progresses, the speech of the cameraperson is incorporated into the shots, which are extended. At times, one image literally frames another, and the effect, achieved through superimposition, is that of a window or gateway. The work incorporates many languages. A set of instructions is quoted from in several languages. A woman's voice narrates some of the scenes, speaking an Asian language. Approximate date: 1988
License Clip
- Series
- New Television
- Program
- New Television, Episode 506
- Program Number
506
- Title
Plage Concrete
- Series Description
"New Television" began as a local pilot production of WNET (New York) in 1986. In 1987, WGBH signed on as co-producer, and the shows were aired in Boston and New York. In 1988 and 1989, KCET (Los Angeles) and WETA (D.C.) became producers in association. In 1991, PBS picked up "New Television," and it was broadcast nationally. The following year, the Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus, Ohio, replaced WNET, WETA, and KCET as co-producer with WGBH. In 1993, WGBH ceased to be a co-producer for the series, and the "home base" moved to Connecticut Public Television (CPTV) in Hartford, CT.
"New Television" commissioned, produced, and acquired programming. In its early years, "New Television" broadcast works commissioned by The Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund. Increasingly, experimental films as well as video works were broadcast as a part of this series. Many of the later episodes of "New Television" contain works that play with and deconstruct the documentary genre. Series release date: 1986
- Program Description
Includes “Phenomenology (Parts A, B, C)” by Andrew Neumann, “Plage Concrete” by Ping Chong, “1932” by Susan Rynard, and “De Stijl” by Nora Ligorano and Marshall Reese.
- Asset Type
Clip
- Media Type
Video
- Subjects
- Chong, Ping
- Museums
- Hoyt, Nancy
- Taxidermy
- Travel
- Topics
- Film and Television
- Publication Information
- WGBH Educational Foundation
- Citation
- Chicago: “New Television; New Television, Episode 506; Plage Concrete,” GBH Archives, accessed April 24, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_9582527EE7BB40F68B71FAFDBE0656A3.
- MLA: “New Television; New Television, Episode 506; Plage Concrete.” GBH Archives. Web. April 24, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_9582527EE7BB40F68B71FAFDBE0656A3>.
- APA: New Television; New Television, Episode 506; Plage Concrete. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_9582527EE7BB40F68B71FAFDBE0656A3