SOLITUDE features the singer Nico as a poet and icon and as part of a tradition within which she saw herself, of bohemian artists traced back to the Romanticism of the early 19th century.

An experimental film which includes five other films (Le Berceau de Cristal, Un Ange Passe, Les Hautes Solitudes, The Chelsea Girls, The River Thames) it places emphasis on structure, camera, stasis and format, and all these elements create a reflexive relationship within the film and to the viewer. Each of these films - and their images – is treated with reverence, and resisting appropriation, it reflects on the image and cultural iconicity.

Solitude is a film about surface where we are led by the aural, carried by a woman’s voice reading us poetry (Coleridge, Brontë, Byron, Tennyson, Keats), by the drones of Gagarin (Graham Dowdall), by the swirling electronic music of Ash Ra Tempel, by the same voice singing the haunting songs of Nico. We do not to get to know Nico’s life or who she is through this film but there is a connection to her person in the soundtrack through the singing, and you hear her spoken voice reciting her lyrics. There is a contrast with the silence of the image and how warm and emotional the voice is.

The images are durational and this creates a distance and space for reflection. A beautiful surface is created through layers of transformation of the original film materials into shimmering textures and layers. What are we seeing? Is it an icon? Is it an idol? A screen? The use of black intervals force us to listen. More of an experience than a film, Solitude is intended for cinemas or similar environment including live readings and music. It is a continuation of a long exploration for experimental filmmaker Nina Danino into ‘the voice’ iconicity, and 'the singer’ as a privileged figure who can access and express both collective and individual profound emotion.

Credits:
A Film by Nina Danino
Producer: Nina Danino
Editor: Nina Danino
Archive Producers: Nina Danino, Kate Griffiths
Films: Nina Danino, Philippe Garrel, Andy Warhol
Sound Recordings: Goldsmiths Music Studios,
Ian Tompson, Dave Hunt Audio
Soundtrack: Nico Spoken Word, Nina Danino Poems and Songs
Music : Ash Ra Tempel, James Creed, Gagarin
Sound Mix: Dave Hunt
Sound Consultant: Joakim Sundström
Picture Mastering: Jason R Moffat
Exhibition Consultant: Johanna Blair
Graphic Design: Adrian Curry

Country of Production: UK
Year: 2022
Running Time : 72 minutes
Screening Format: DCP, ProRes422HQ, H264 (mp4)
Sound: 5:1 or stereo 25fps
Aspect Ratio 16:9
Language: English
Colour and Black and White

https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/34839