Indeed, pictures are louder than words. However, it’s the juxtaposition of one image against the other that creates meaning. It’s what makes editing, the arduous task of compiling, organizing, and ordering images not just a necessary duty but also truly an art.
Argentine filmmaker and visual artist Florencia Aliberti takes a hands-on approach to montage. She collects photos and footage that have been discarded, that have lost their meaning to others, and repurposes them into experimental films. Her point of departure is photography and collage, pulling from influences such as Maholy-Nagy. She most often employs super 8 and 16 mm film in her found footage projects: drawing, scratching, painting, and treating the celluloid as though she were working on a painting or a sculpture.
In Variaciones sobre Alicia, Aliberti manipulates a print of a classic Disney film, and intercuts it with a vintage pornographic movie. White Rabbit and Alice thus become active observers and implied actors as the erotic scene unfolds. The result is both disturbing and exciting, making the sexual act seem more innocent and the cartoon characters more lecherous. Aliberti’s forced collaboration with Lewis Carroll and the seemingly virtuous movie studio that adapted his work is an exquisite stab at the innocence of youth.
Check it out, but be advised: make sure your abuelita isn’t around before hitting play.