A film by Larry Andrews
Presented by the Center for Documentary Arts and Research (CDAR)
Screening followed by discussion with:
Larry Andrews, Associate Professor, Film & Digital Media
Derek Murray, Assistant Professor, History of Art and Visual Culture
Soraya Murray, Assistant Professor, Film & Digital Media
Eric Porter, Professor, American Studies, History,and History of Consciousness
Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing aftermath destroyed Noel's community and home. He is rebuilding, and as he rebuilds, he evokes the past through enlistment of his personal archives. His memories are complicated by the tragic events that occured on the Danziger Bridge on September 4, 2005. As Noel reflects back on what has been lost, the story that he tells about his neighborhood is affected by the story of innocent people gunned down while attempting to cross a bridge in search of safety, and for Noel their plight clarifies many things. Noel is performing his story, motivated by a collection of photographs that prompt him to recount events from his past and present. An implied author performs Noel who then performs others, who themselves are performing with varying degrees of self-consciousness. And in this manner of a performative documentary comes into being. (49 min., 2013)
For most of his artistic career, Lawrence Andrews' work has functioned in a fine arts context, exhibiting in museums, galleries, and festivals. His work has focused on issues of race, identity and power and has been realized in video, photography, installations, audio projects and now animation. During recent years, Mr. Andrews' work has become increasingly involved with more traditional narrative and documentary methodologies while remaining committed to his core artistic concerns. His work has shown extensively throughout the U.S. and internationally on cable television, major film and art festivals, and in museums and galleries, including the Whitney Biennial, the New York Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Pacific Rim Film Archive, and the American Film Institute. He has received various grants, awards, and fellowships in support of his work including a Rockefeller Intercultural Documentary Fellowship and two National Endowment for the Arts Artist Fellowships.