I love this video and I wish I could see Michael Rakowitz's show. I guess this will have to do. I remember being struck with Uday Hussein's interest in Science fiction but I didn't know the rabbit hole went this deep.
There can’t be many artists who have been interviewed both by TateShots and Star Wars Insider Magazine, but that’s what happened to Michael Rakowitz as he put the finishing touches to his Tate Modern exhibition. Star Wars fans, it seems, were as eager as us to find out the links between science fiction fantasy and the reality of war, with Darth Vader’s iconic helmet playing an unexpected role. Rakowitz’s exhibition explores seemingly implausible connections between objects and events. Included in the show are a diverse range of material, from the ‘Empire Strikes Back’ poster a young Rakowitz adorned on his bedroom wall, to WW2 memorabilia sourced from eBay, and an example of Sadam Hussein’s taste in literary cover art. Plagiarism claims, wrestling scandals and the Supergun affair are also thrown into the mix. In this video the artist is our guide around the exhibition.
Michael Rakowitz: The worst condition is to pass under a sword which is not one’s own, Tate Modern, until May 3, 2010.