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Etienne Claire (Riojim)
BIO
Runs the Fondhurle Lab where he teaches DIY film processing, contact and optical printing and editing.He is particularly attracted to abstract animation, the pleasure of physically modifying images on the film via twisted and other chemical treatments frowned on by professional labs. He pushes the possibilities of the emulsion to the edge. The material produced in the laboratory becomes a work of improvisation integrating all the parameters of projection. By means of prepared projectors, he applies severe treatment to the projector and plays with the film and the homemade optical sound on film to create a real visual music.
Involved in experimental film for 20 years, Riojim have been a member of the 102, a venue in Grenoble dedicated to experimental arts, hosting most of the foremost improvisers of new music. It is natural that his art culture and sensibility turn him toward the practice of improvisation which he understand as a quick and profound reaction to events where each performance is constructed for a particular time and place. Citing Jim Denley, he also believe that exploring the moment of creation - when an idea, feeling or gesture is first expressed - is to take part in the most exciting adventure possible, not only for the artist but also for the audience !
As a ex-member of Atelier MTK he is deeply engaged in sharing film processing knowledges and tools, open to collaborate with artists who consider the lab as a field of experimentation and research.
Also he’s regularly invited to organize workshops in schools, universities and with artists groups.
These workshops can be as simple as "making films without camera", or it may be a collaboration with artists who want to start their own lab.
The base of workshop is to explore and practice ideas around creative processing, projection space, projector manipulation, camera-less film making, optical sound...with 16mm film.