Head of a Misanthropic Man

Image Not Available
Copied Peter Campus, Head of a Misanthropic Man, 1976-1978, analog video transferred to digital video, color, silent; looped, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2011.55.2, © 1976-1978, Peter Campus

Artwork Details

Title
Head of a Misanthropic Man
Artist
Date
1976-1978
Location
Not on view
Copyright
© 1976-1978, Peter Campus
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment
Mediums
Mediums Description
analog video transferred to digital video, color, silent; looped
Classifications
Object Number
2011.55.2

Artwork Description

A key figure in the history of video art, Peter Campus explores the novelties of the electronic image and the transformative characteristics of video. Here Campus presents a tightly cropped and stationary portrait of a man's face, deliberately lit and framed for dramatic effect. His vague, unnerving gaze inverts the traditional role between audience and performer; the effect is amplified by the barely visible shimmer of a recorded picture. The titled itself suggests the uneasy interaction the viewer is about to enter.

Exhibitions

Media - 2016.29.3 - SAAM-2016.29.3_1 - 124404
Watch This! New Directions on the Art of the Moving Image (5.0)
September 9, 2016March 5, 2017
Watch This! New Directions in the Art of the Moving Image is a series of rotating exhibitions drawn from SAAM’s permanent collection.