One of our leading artists, Clare Langan has represented Ireland's at number of International Biennials, including Sao Paulo and Liverpool, and her stunning film and video works have been acclaimed globally.
A new exhibition at The Dock, Leitrim, curated by Neva Elliott, celebrates Langan’s beautiful, haunting visions in video, featuring eight of her seminal works - find out more here.
Clare will discuss her work with writer and broadcaster (and RTÉ Culture contributor) Cristin Leech on Saturday, March 23rd, following a screening of several of her films - find out more here.
We asked Clare for her choice cultural picks...
Watch: Clare Langan's Flight From The City, featuring music by Jóhann Jóhannsson:
FILM
Of the recent Oscar nominations, I’d really recommend The Favorite, for its boundary breaking script and cinematography by Robbie Ryan.
I’m looking forward to seeing and hearing the late Jóhann Jóhannsson’s Last and First Men, his directorial debut which will be released later this year. Based on the cult science fiction novel by Olaf Stapledon, it combines music, film and narration from Tilda Swinton, sitting somewhere between fiction and documentary. It will be screened at The Sydney Opera House with a live score by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in June. I’m also a fan of Terrence Malick’s films, so I’m looking forward to seeing Radegund which is rumoured to show at Cannes this year. It follows the real-life story of Austrian Franz Jägerstätter, who famously was a conscientious objector and refused to fight for the Nazis during World War II."
MUSIC
I’m always looking for new directions in film music, so that draws me to a number of composers like Hildur Guðnadóttir, Anna Thorvaldsdottir, A Winged Victory for the Sullen, and of course the late Jóhann Jóhannsson, with whom I collaborated on a number of my films. I’ve always been drawn to the Icelandic music scene, so I listen to a lot of new music coming fron there. Also record labels like Redbird Music, Mute Song and Erased Tapes Music always have interesting composers. A friend recently introduced me to some New Zealand artists like Aldous Harding and Karen Dalton, which Spotify will then lead you to people like Perfume Genius and others whom I like.
BOOK
Recently I’ve been reading Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari. It lays bare the evolution of humankind and the effect we have had on the planet in such a startling and clear manner. I’d also like to read Margaret Atwood’s MaddAddam Trilogy which focuses on climate and the environment. There’s talk of it being made into a series by HBO and its on Audible as a podcast I believe.
THEATRE
I don’t really get to the theater very often but I do get to some dance performances. I loved Michael Keegan Dolan’s Swan Lake/Loch na hEala, which was on at the Abbey last year. It’s an amazing interweaving of stories, and the power and energy from the performances is electric. I look forward to seeing what he produces next with his company Teac Damsa. I also look forward to seeing Dublin based Swedish choreographer Maria Nilsson Waller’s Flora Fauna at some point this year. Maria and I have worked together on my last few films so we have a lot of similar interests.
TV
I’m looking forward to the second series of Big Little Lies, which is directed by Andrea Arnold, whom I a fan of (American Honey and Wuthering Heights). The first series was directed by Jean- Marc Vallée, who also directed Sharp Objects staring Amy Adams, which took the whole series to unravel the story... Its dark, but worth sticking with. On Netflix, Roma, the Oscar-winning film from by Alfonso Cuarón. Visually stunning, the choreography of the action and the camera is mindboggling. And then there’s River Cottage, which I watch in the hope of elaborating my culinary skills… He’s gone vegetarian for thus season.
GIG
Crash Ensemble, are playing at the National Concert Hall on the 19th April as part of MusicTown Festival. Grey Area is a skateboarding film with live original score. Shot and edited by skate photographer and videographers Niall O’Byrne and Sam Curtin, with music by young Cork composer Sam Perkin.
ART
I would really like to see Isaac Julien’s Lessons of the Hour, currently running at Metro Pictures in New York. It’s a ten-screen film installation exploring "the incomparable achievements of America's foremost abolitionist figure, Frederick Douglass".
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Also Jesper Just’s Cadavre Exquis in Osterbro Theatre, Denmark. Another artist I really admire, who works with installation, film, choreography, performance. "In Cadavre Exquis, the audience is met by a huge screen, two cameramen and three performers. With staggered elements and clips between film and live recordings, a deeply surprising performance is created with swinging views and time shifts." Sounds exciting! I am sure both these shows will tour.
PODCAST
I don’t listen to many podcasts. One of the few I have listened to was West Cork which investigated the 1996 murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier. I found it riveting. Must sort out bluetooth in the car to make all those long journeys more interesting…
TECH
Flow Vr, A virtual reality app, with guided meditation by its founder Tristan Gribbin. Immersive images of the beautiful Icelandic landscape with Icelandic music. I haven’t tried it, but would like to.
THE NEXT BIG THING...
The new wave of ‘youth eco warriors’ that are taking to the streets worldwide protesting about Climate Action, inspired by the Swedish teen Greta Thunberg. If you haven’t already seen it, watch her speech at the UN Climate Change COP24 Conference. This isn’t a fad; its not going to go away and these are the people who will be voting in a few years time. The power of one can lead to change...
