July 4, 2008

As the second invasion of Iraq by the U.S. was beginning in open aggression, and thousands of of 2000-pound U.S.-made bombs were about to fall on Iraqi land and people as part of the "shock and awe" air-war campaign,

Der Standard - March 20th, 2003:





Jean-Marie Straub and Hans Hurch (director of the Viennale) made a Peace Wall commenting on many things, including "the threatening catastrophe" of this war. A continuation of the wall was to follow by Jean-Luc Godard.

On the wall:

a) WHERE DOES YOUR SMILE LIE BURIED?* (literal translation of the graffito in red on gray). Photograph by Deiter Reifarth; the same graffito seen at the beginning of Straub/Huillet's film Von heute auf morgen (1997, FROM TODAY UNTIL TOMORROW)

b) a still-frame from John Ford's THE LONG GRAY LINE (1955)

(Here, two photos of the wall as it appeared in the streets of Vienna. Photo: Viennale)-





and 5 years later...












1 comment:

Andy Rector said...

Thanks to Tag Gallagher for the article and photos.

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* "No final, após a pergunta da criança, filmaram um muro com um grafito que, durante a rodagem, ocasionalmente lhes chamara a atenção. Wo liegt euer Lacheln begraben? O que se pode traduzir por Onde Jaz o teu sorriso oculto? ou, na mais explicativa tradução francesa (escolhida por Pedro Costa para titulo original do seu filme) Où gît votre sourire enfoui?, vertido mais elipticamente, no titulo português como Onde Jaz o Teu Sorriso?."
( --João Bénard da Costa)
thank you José.
___________________

and...

PROGRESS. THE WORLD IS ON THE MARCH. WHY SHOULDN'T IT TURN AROUND?
-Rimbaud (A Season in Hell)

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