Roger Horrocks and Sarah Davy were recently invited to present talks at the Canberra International Film Festival by festival director Andrew Pike. Both are trustees of the Foundation and have been long involved in archiving and documenting his films. Their talk, ‘Why Len Lye Matters’ was well received by an enthusiastic audience. Roger and Sarah also presented and screened, throughout the festival, extracts from Len’s films Tusalava, Rainbow Dance, Trade Tattoo, Free Radicals, Work Party, Musical Poster No. 1 and the documentary, Art of the Sixties: The Walls Come Tumbling Down,
Their session on Sunday 5 November in the Arc Cinema explored the context for Len Lye’s work, the sources of his inspiration, the broad scope of his achievements in film and in kinetic sculpture, and discussed the challenges of archiving it for the future.
Lye was influenced by his early years in Australia and New Zealand - particularly by, Māori, Aboriginal and Pacific art. In Sydney he learnt his early film craft before moving on to Britain and the United States where he made a series of unique films that pioneered new techniques and thrilled audiences by his lively methods of combining images with jazz.
Len matters because of the strength of his cultural resonance today – as evidenced by the Len Lye Centre, his influence on contemporary film-makers and sculptors, the way his sculptures enliven cityscapes and generate cultural tourism, along with his energetic commitment to the ethos of experimentation, though extensive research and development. As Roger observed:
‘Len matters to us as a role model of the experimental artist. He left a body of films which feel just as fresh and vibrant today as when they were first made. His innovations such as painting directly on film were picked up by many other film-makers. For example, the great animator Norman McLaren acknowledged Len’s films as a major source of inspiration. Today we are living in an extraordinary period, the age of the digital revolution, and Len’s spirit of innovation is something we urgently need’.
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Roger Horrocks and Sarah Davy at the Canberra International Film Festival
Photo courtesy of John Bannon, New Zealand High Commission
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