Rä di Martino, born in 1975 in Rome, studied at Chelsea College and the Slade School of Fine Art and lives in New York. He participated in Manifesta, 2008, and Busan Biennial, 2006. Exhibitions included Tate Modern, London; PS1, New York; MCA Chicago; Palazzo Grassi, Venice; Magasin, Grenoble. Solo exhibitions since 2003 included Vartaj Gallery, Vilnius; CAV, Coimbra; Monitor Gallery, Rome
Short History of Abandoned Scenes / Petite Histoire des Plateaux Abandonnés
(MAR/ITA 2012, HD, 9 Min., arOmeU)
Petite Histoire des Plateaux Abandonnés looks at the architectural and cultural remains of film shoots in the Maroccan desert, which Hollywood studios like to use as a stand-in for anywhere from ancient Rome to unknown planets. After the shoot, the props are abandoned in the desert to decay into “ancient ruins” to be visited by the local population.
The Show MAS Go On
(ITA 2014, 30’, Italian)
German Premiere
The five-story department store MAS in Rome opened a century ago as an expensive shopping center for fashion. Today, only the magnificent old chandeliers still testify to the glories of the past. For the length of one film, however, threadbare carpets and dusty shelves again serve as a stage for urban fauna of our time, where performances and scenes rekindle the spirit of a cult department store.
