Rolling, Action ... Paint!
3.5.-21.9.2025
Curated by Paul Carey-Kent & Jari Lager
Painting meets film in the main exhibition of the 2025 programme of Vestfossen Kunstlaboratorium, Rolling, Action ... Paint!
There is no doubt about the mutual influence of painting and film: consider how the visual compositions, lighting effects and colour palettes of painting can be traced in the cinema; how painters imply movement and use camera-like perspectives; or the to-and-fro between surreal and dreamlike qualities across the media. But this show was somewhat different, as the curators looked at the relationship at the level of individual artists. A world-spanning mix of 19 painters showed their work with a film alongside, so that the two informed each other.
These combinations operated in one of two ways. Around half showcased films made by the painters themselves, such as animations by Markus Vater, Emma Talbot, and Tilo Baumgärtel; Darren Almond’s manipulated monorail footage; and the performative approach of Bek Hyunjin, Quilla Constance, and Ivana de Vivanco. These are artists for whom both painting and film form significant parts of a wide-ranging practise.
The other half of the artists present their paintings alongside films that illuminate aspects of their process and personality, made expressly to inform the paintings. Some of those films are made by the artists themselves, such as Catherine Anholt’s conversational tour of her studio, and the drone-shot documentation that Peter Matthews makes with each ongoing series of his paintings at the edge of the ocean.
Some are filmed by people close to them, such as the time-lapse of Ørnulf Opdahl painting, captured by his grandson. And some by other artists who are acknowledged as filmmakers in their own right: Liang-Jung Chen meditates on one particular material used by Johnny Abrahams – beeswax; Grace Long Yung Yu takes us on a drive with Jen Orpin; and not only has Ben Rivers made a film about Rose Wylie, she has made a painting about one of his other films – also on view.
The show as a whole provided an unusual opportunity to interpret paintings in the context of films that are of interest in themselves, as well as throwing light on the paintings in a wide range of ways. It was also a chance to compare the languages of film and painting, building on their mutual influence in the 20th century to enable similarities and contrasts to be identified in the contemporary approached of an international roster of, all in all, 22 artists.
Johnny Abrahams with Liang-Jung Chen, Darren Almond, Catherine Anholt, Tilo Baumgärtel, Xavier Baxter, Bek Hyunjin, Quilla Constance, Daniel Crews-Chubb, Kristian Evju, Peter Matthews, Galina Munroe, Ørnulf Opdahl, Jen Orpin with Grace, Long Yung Yu, Matthew Stone, Emma Talbot, Liorah Tchiprout, Markus Vater, Ivana de Vivanco, Rose Wylie with Ben Rivers
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Saturday 14 June 2025
Guided Tour with curator Paul Carey-Kent!
We invited you to join us for a special guided tour of “Rolling, Action … Paint!” – a rare opportunity to hear directly from curator Paul Carey-Kent about the exhibition and selected artworks. One could ask questions, and gain further insight into the art practices of the featured artists.
Paul Carey-Kent is a UK-based writer and curator. He is a member of the International Association of Art Critics, and the visual arts editor of art-meets-science magazine @Seismamag. He writes regularly for Art Monthly (UK) and Border Crossings (Canada), in addition to a weekly column online for @worldoffad and a monthly interview feature for @Artlyst. Carey-Kent has curated over fifty exhibitions, including VKL’s main exhibition in 2022, Girl Meets Girl.
Participating artists
- Johnny Abrahams
- Liang-Jung Chen
- Darren Almond
- Catherine Anholt
- Tilo Baumgärtel
- Xavier Baxter
- Bek Hyunjin
- Quilla Constance
- Daniel Crews-Chubb
- Kristian Evju
- Peter Matthews
- Galina Munroe
- Ørnulf Opdahl
- Jen Orpin
- Grace Long Yung Yu
- Matthew Stone
- Emma Talbot
- Liorah Tchiprout
- Markus Vater
- Ivana de Vivanco
- Rose Wylie
- Ben Rivers