Rather Die Than Die, Video Hd, 63′. Production CNAP, Seconde Vague, Arte-La Lucarne, 2018
Artist Natacha Nisic explores the remnants of the First World War through the lens of two stories, two civilisations and two deeply-etched experiences of time and of pain. The first story looks at North American Indians, in particular members of the Hopi tribe, many of whom had enlisted and fought on the battlefronts in Picardy and the Somme in 1917 and 1918. The second is an archaeology of daily pain chronicled in the clinical journal written by German art historian Aby Warburg, member of a leading Jewish banking family who had famously exchanged his right to take over the bank for all the books he would ever want. During the many months of the ruthless war, Warburg collected hundreds, even thousands of images and texts as he strove to understand the ideological underpinnings of the brutal conflict. His work took its toll on his mental health.
Natacha Nisic’s film is a symphony that pays tribute to mankind, it is a film-manifesto both in form and substance.
This film was commissioned by the Ministry of Culture, under the auspices of the Centre National des Arts Plastiques, within the scope of the commemorations of the Centennial of the First World War. It is listed on inventory of the Fonds National d’Art Contemporain
DVD
Plunged into a deep psychosis in 1918, Aby Warburg emerged from his madness thanks to a lecture he gave on the snake ritual of the Hopi Indians. It is at the heart of this madness that the film weaves links between the aftermath of the Great War and a possible cure.
Artist Natacha Nisic sets out to trace the footsteps of World War I by intertwining two stories, two civilizations, but also two intimate experiences of time and suffering. The first is that of the North American Indians, and more particularly the Hopis, most of whom were volunteers who fought from 1917 to 1918 on the Picardy and Somme fronts. The second is an archaeology of everyday suffering recounted in the clinical diary kept by German art historian Aby Warburg, heir to a Jewish banking family, who traded his share of the inheritance for the opportunity to build a library. Throughout the months of the war, Warburg collected hundreds, thousands of images and texts in order to understand the ideological underpinnings of the deadly conflict. He lost his mind in the process.
This film is a symphony in the image of Aby Warburg, a film-manifesto in both form and content. It is accompanied by a booklet with two texts, one by Natacha Nisic and the other by Annette Becker, a historian specializing in the study of war violence.
Commissioned by the Ministry of Culture and led by the Centre National des Arts Plastiques as part of the centenary commemorations of the First World War, this film is listed in the inventories of the Fonds National d’Art Contemporain.
The DVD has been awarded the First World War Centenary label.
Film by Natacha Nisic.Texts by Natacha Nisic and Annette Becker. Published with the Centre national des arts plastiques. Edited by Gilles Coudert. Released in January 2018. Bilingual edition (French/English)
DVD Digipack (DVD5 – PAL – MULTIZONE – AC3 Stereo – 16/9), 40-page booklet (b&w ill.) 66′
