Elam’s “El Shots,” sharing footage and theme with Elam’s “El,” sketches travel in Chicago. From people scurrying across intersections, to cars blurring down pavement, to watching buildings whizz by from an El-situated vantage (seemingly the Blue Line), Elam outlines how people orient the city as well as juxtaposes said locomotion with meandering individuals, e.g. children
Elam’s “Janssen Porch/Garden ’79” opens bewilderingly focused on wavering tree branches. Panning away, the camera, from high a vantage, notes the environment, e.g. neighboring buildings and the garden below (this is seemingly the same Logan Square garden that frequents Elam’s work). The camera, focusing on blossoming flowers and vegetables, descends to the garden and proceeds
“Belden & Kimball” lurks around a porch, seemingly the same elevated overlook Elam used to shoot from in several of her other works, e.g. “Janssen Porch/Garden ’79.” This piece distinguishes itself because, rather than looking beyond, the majority of this footage notes the lay out of the porch space itself, noting its d?cor and structure.
“Closet Film” flickers hues of white and yellow intermittently. Stretching to its halfway point, the frame cuts to black as a myriad of blues barrage across the frame, before returning to the film’s original abstract yellow and white sequencing. Near the end, a lone human actor opaquely appears. The film concludes on a shot of
“Cats” follows the lackadaisical affairs of two black cats. From lounging on a window sill and pawing at an encroaching plant to playfully tussling around in some unwound 16mm film, the camera stalks one or both of the cats, documenting their inquisitive nature.
Elam’s “Rhinos & Black” consists of two sections: the former pans around a kitchen table as female company (including Elam herself in a red plaid shirt) chuckles and communes together over a meal;the latter section (approximately four of the five minute runtime) cuts to black only to relent with occasional flickers and flares.
“Memphremagog” violently sprints and halts through a collage of travel montage, providing a glimpse at cattle, nature, and road tripping. The sequence paces out on a close up of seemingly JoAnn Elam’s face before transitioning into a family scene on a cabin’s back porch. There, a parliament of characters engages with one another: talking, laughing,
A myriad of purple and blue markings flicker hypnotically across the screen in “Filmabuse.” Periodically a blue screen flashes, disturbing the trance induced by the colorful smudges. The rhythm of the colors gathers steam and accelerates as the film continues. Near the conclusion, for the entirety of one second, a woman appears;she is “put together”
“JoAnn & Susan x2” begins with a female protagonist, JoAnn Elam, playfully modeling a red, knit blanket, superimposed by a rider, JoAnn’s sister Susan Elam, and her steed moseying around a indoor corral in Grayslake, IL. As the juxtaposition continues, Susan meanders in the background and JoAnn time travels backward, through a series of segments
“Girl in Dome” surveys the playtime of a young child. Toddling around a yard, the child plays as the camera remains close over her shoulder. With time, the cuts grow progressively rapid, and the film shifts to seemingly the same child from the yard’s birthday party: the child blows out the cake’s candles and the