In Conversation: Julian Rosefeldt, Cate Blanchett, and Kristy Edmunds' at Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles

'In Conversation: Julian Rosefeldt, Cate Blanchett, and Kristy Edmunds', Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles, 27 October 2018 Courtesy Hauser & Wirth Photo: Mario de Lopez On the occasion of ‘Julian Rosefeldt. Manifesto’ – the West Coast premiere of the 13-channel film installation by visual artist Julian Rosefeldt at Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles – a discussion of the work with the artist, Oscar Award-winning actress, Cate Blanchett, and Executive and Artistic Director of UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance, Kristy Edmunds. In ‘Manifesto’ (2015), actress Cate Blanchett assumes 13 different personas – from a factory worker to a television news anchor to a homeless man – performing various historical artists’ manifestos. The work pays homage to the long tradition and literary beauty of public statements made by artists, and serves to provoke reflection upon the role of the artist as an active citizen in society today. ‘Manifesto’ draws on the writings of Futurists, Dadaists, Fluxus artists, Suprematists, Situationists, Dogme 95, and other artist groups, and the musings of individual artists, architects, dancers, and filmmakers. As writer, producer, and director, Rosefeldt draws here upon the words and ideas of Claes Oldenburg, Yvonne Rainer, Kazimir Malevich, André Breton, Sturtevant, Sol LeWitt, Jim Jarmusch, and many others. This source material was often the result of youthful outrage, expressing not only the wish to change the world through art, but convey the mood and sensibility of a generation. Exploring the powerful urgency of these historical statements, ‘Manifesto’ invites us to ponder their enduring relevance and value. ‘Manifesto’ debuted at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Melbourne in 2015. ‘In Conversation: Julian Rosefeldt, Cate Blanchett, and Kristy Edmunds’ is a part of the ‘Year of German-American Friendship’ initiative in 2018/19. The ‘Year of German-American Friendship’ is a comprehensive and collaborative initiative of the Federal Foreign Office, the Goethe-Institute, and with support of the Federation of German Industries (BDI), highlighting the decades long relationship grounded in common values, interests, and goals.