Manifesta purposely strives to keep its distance from what are often seen as the dominant centres of artistic production, instead seeking fresh and fertile terrain for the mapping of a new cultural topography.
Laurent Grasso, FR
Laurent Grasso, The Silent Movie, 2010 © Manifesta 8 / Ilya Rabinovich.
Cartagena, a strategic port city in the Mediterranean, was always defended by fortresses and bastions. This film by French artist Laurent Grasso depicted this ancient defence system as an iconic symbol of the relationship between Northern Africa and Spain. Using voice over narration to describe both history and legend, the film explored notions of fear and paranoia, and drew a parallel between events from the past and the present day.