Thursday 14 March 2013

Face recognition


Sarah has just posted a video clip of the silent meeting between two artists who used to be lovers, conducted in front of an audience who had come to see the one whose show it was, and who did not know he was turning up until she opened her eyes.  I'm sure I could have put this better, but I'm still feeling bloody ill and words are not coming easy this morning. This is what I am talking about: CLIP

After I had wiped the tear from my eye, I thought how much more amusing it would have been if she had not recognised him, but - like I say - I'm not thinking straight today.

The clip reminded me of that scene where Natasha Kinski performs behind a one-way mirror in the film, 'Paris, Texas', and explains why she abandoned whatshisface with their child - but with a lot more words. I can't watch that scene without blubbing either.

There is a rare condition whereby the unfortunate sufferer cannot recall faces - even their spouse's - after not looking at them for a couple of minutes. They have little tricks they employ with their families, like persuading them not to change hairstyles or clothing without advance warning, and in this way they seem to manage at home reasonably well.

I heard one woman sufferer recently who - amazingly - managed to hold down her job as a solicitor, but would cut her best friend dead in the street on her way to work. Also amazingly, she had managed to keep her condition secret to all but her immediate family.

I was once having tea in an outside cafe, chatting with a man who - as it turned out - was a super-famous celebrity, but I didn't recognise him until passers-by began to ogle and stare. He must have found my unselfconscious conversation refreshingly different.

27 comments:

  1. No video of marina and Ulay loaded when I clicked on the link
    And do you know what?
    All I could think of was
    " thank fuck for that"

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    1. You have missed out on a very touching moment between two people, which many have been allowed to share.

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    2. Sounds like a bit of pretension to me... Private moments should be private

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    3. I did eventually found the clip on YouTube and although the emotion was undeniable , I refer back to my original comment.....
      The whole thing smacked of indulgence

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    4. Now if he had started to smack her up a bit, that would have been RIGHT up your street, eh John?

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    5. And it's 'DER' - get that right.

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  2. But if their Wall of China artistic stunt involved resolving to hug and never meet again, surely in meeting again they devalued their major artistic statement in creating a more minor one (the minute's silence), and prioritised novelty over significance?

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    1. Good point, well made, Mise. I now hate them both as much as John does.

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  3. Thanks for posting the link, Tom. I found it very moving and powerful, not to mention exquisitely beautiful... Hope you feel better soon ...

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  4. The scene could have used some autumn leaves and light bulbs, but otherwise...

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    1. Ah, you refer to our seminal, joint work We must have a retrospective, before it's too late. They are going to ban those old light bulbs soon.

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  5. That video was really beautiful, thank you. First the young man was they only one (we saw) who smiled a bit and I thought: that's why I love the young - and then came the moving encounter with her partner - and just when I thought: Why on earth don't they touch?? they did - great and at the same time scary - I mean: they were both living, but made one think of how it will be when one is no longer there. Or there and not to be reached. And showed without words why it might take long to even accept to look at another person (it was good that another anonymous followed, but I wouldn't have dared). So, thank you!

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  6. It would have been quite funny if she hadn't recognised him!
    When I saw the China Wall doco years ago, I felt the whole thing was solipsistic (new favourite word). But today I thought that they had made their story into a work of art.
    Quite beautiful

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    1. Slapstick? Oh give me a minute and I'll Google up the meaning - sheesh!

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  7. And thanks for linking Tom. For once I've had more genuine visitors than spammers and facebook bots.
    Sorry to hear you are ill. Hope you get better really soon. X

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  8. I can't decide if I liked it or just found it a bit too arty weird. (I kept focusing on her shiny face and thinking she had too much make up on...)

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    1. Really? I thought she didn't have enough. I can see why they had to walk the Wall of Chine to get a bit of space.

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  9. I'm not all that observant Tom and frequently meet people who obviously know me but I don't remember at all. It can seem quite rude although it is unintentional.
    Get well soon - and keep up the whisky lemon and honey.

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    1. It was the whisky lemon and honey what done for me.

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  10. Not sure why you would taint a perfectly good whiskeu with lemon and honey but oh well..Hope you are feeling better soon. Your sarcasm is best served well done.

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    1. I can't drink whiskeu without sweetening it, but whisky is ok on it's own. I'm feeling much better today, thanks Donna.

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